PREPASSR has been superseded by and incorporated into the new TEAPAC Complete product which is described in detail at the main page of www.StrongConcepts.com.  Upgrades from PREPASSR to TEAPAC Complete are available.  Contact Strong Concepts for details.

:PREPASSR Ver 2.81 27MAY08

Build 11 - 27MAY08

>Dialogs identify need for consistency between Yellowtimes & ReqClearances.

The dialogs for GreenTimes and YellowTimes have been updated with additional text to clarify the importance of maintaining a consistency between the YellowTimes and ReqClearances entries. This consistency is especially important when the entry format is Converted from By-Phase to By-Movement and when Exporting to ring-based software.

>Correct offsets displayed in time-space diagram for exclusive pedestrian phase.

When an intersection included an exclusive pedestrian phase, as defined by the PedTime entry, it was possible that the offsets and/or phases displayed in the time-space diagram of a Plot would not be correct. This possibility has been eliminated.

>No attempt to Export, Plot or Timings if no real nodes have been selected.

Any attempt by the program to perform an Export, Plot or Timings directive will now be aborted in the event that no real nodes have been selected for the desired action, thus avoiding a potential crash due to lack of adequate data to perform the selected action.

>Error message for improperly connected node has detailed help text.

Error #15 which is issued when a node is detected that is not properly connected to the rest of the network now includes a reference to the Help text for the message which gives details about potential causes and resolutions. In particular, diagonal connections between nodes which have not been created properly are described in detail.

>Include manual distance status for dummy nodes in View-Summary (SUMMARISE).

The status of a link's Network distance entry is now displayed properly for dummy nodes, eliminating the garbage that could potentially be displayed in its place in the View-Summary or Summarise output report.

>Plot & Timings only check for valid data of intersections to be plotted/listed.

The Plot and Timings actions will now only check that data entries appear valid for nodes to be plotted or timings listed, rather than all nodes in the defined network. This allows portions of a large network to be plotted or timings listed before data for the entire network has been entered.

>Widen timing field in TIMINGS report to allow intervals over 99.9 seconds long.

The display fields for the TIMINGS output report have been increased so that timing intervals with values larger than 99.9 seconds can be displayed properly.

>Generic changes made to all Ver 7.81 TEAPAC programs.

Allow negative percentage on ASSIGNMENT for Passbys and Diverted trips.
Use Shift while dragging mouse to define development area on network display.
Dialogs identify need for consistency between Yellowtimes & ReqClearances.
Display dummy node dot and node number if it is current node or in Subsystem.
Note in CrdSysMgmt dialog that NewLinkDist button assumes coords are in feet.
Able to save from OpenIntoEdit if it was first file opened into program.
NOTE shows 'Issue X Not Selected' when case selection does not select an Issue.
File-OpenMerge does not allow existing Network data to be overwritten by zeros.
File-SaveAs to an existing file name with Scenario conditions doesn't hang.
File-SaveAs shows file type of current file & better file type descriptions.

:PREPASSR Ver 2.80 25APR07

Build 00 - 08JUN07

>Long File Names and Longer Path Names Implemented, Plus New File Format.

 

All aspects of TEAPAC data file storage, including SCENARIO condition files, have been extended so that file names can have as many as 70 characters in their names, and file path names can have as many as 180 characters, both including upper or lower case characters and spaces. Since SCENARIO condition files and certain file switch options can add as many as 6 characters to file names, it is best if user-entered names are no more than 64 characters.

A new, higher capacity data file format with a new file extension (.tpc) has been introduced which will be used by default for all new files created by all TEAPAC programs. This format is text-based like the old .for format so it is still easy to see what is in a file, as well as write such files from other programs, but with a look to the future this format has line length maximums of 256 characters per line (254 useable) instead of the more limiting maximums of the .for format which had maximums of 128 characters per line (80 useable). The old format can still be read and written simply by continuing to use the .for extension, but users are encouraged to convert files to the new format simply by saving .for file with the new .tpc extension (then archive the .for files so they are not used by mistake). The long file names and paths mentioned above are valid for either extension.

>New User Discussion Forum Is Accessible Directly from the Help Menu.

The new User Discussion Forum which has been implemented for TEAPAC users and is available 24/7 for posting questions and searching through answers to previous questions can now be accessed directly from the Help menu of the program. The Forum can also be accessed directly using any internet browser at www.StrongConcepts.com/Forum.

:PREPASSR Ver 2.71 08SEP06

Build 07 - 25JAN07

Scroll down to 'Ver 2.70 07NOV05, Build 07 - 11NOV05' below for the major changes which were implemented for the original Visual TEAPAC release of this program.

>SCENARIO Program Makes its Debut.

SCENARIO is a new Visual TEAPAC program that can create multi-scenario data files either from scratch or from data files of earlier versions of TEAPAC. Users can 1) select from pre-defined typical scenario structures like multiple volume conditions or multiple timing plans, 2) create completely unique scenario conditions for their analyses, or 3) customize a pre-defined scenario structure to meet their specific needs. The primary advantage of using SCENARIO is that all the scenario data is saved without dangers of duplicated data which often occur when scenarios are managed by the typical use of File-SaveAs.
 


The SCENARIO program also functions as an automatic plugin for all other Visual TEAPAC programs so that each program automatically understands the SCENARIO file structure which has been created, and at no additional cost (see below).

SCENARIO can easily define both single-issue and multi-issue conditions, and any data dialog can be assigned or re-assigned to any defined issue for as many as five independent, mutually-exclusive Issues. 25 Conditions can be defined for each Issue. For example, a very common and simple single-issue scenario would be having multiple volume conditions for one or more intersections for which capacity analysis, intersection design and/or signal timing optimization would be needed. Other examples of a single-issue analysis could be multiple years of traffic count data for TURNS or WARRANTS, or multiple years or zones of land use for SITE's projected traffic estimation.

Multi-issue scenarios could be combinations of any of these, where the variation of one variable is independent of the others. Another example of a multi-issue scenario could be where one Issue is changing volumes based on the time-of-day and/or day-of-week while the other Issue is independently changing intersection geometrics which depend on differing funding possibilities.

>SCENARIO Support in All Visual TEAPAC Programs.

All Visual TEAPAC programs have been updated so that support for multi-issue data files created by SCENARIO is automatic and seamless. The SCENARIO program serves as a plugin to the other Visual TEAPAC programs so that they automatically support the SCENARIO-structured files for both File-Open and File-Save. A new File menu option labeled Get-Scenario-Case allows the user to select any of the Conditions for all of the Issues which have been created, and any subsequent changes to data which are made are automatically saved in the correct Condition files which have been defined. SCENARIO has also been added to all LinkTo menus so that SCENARIO is immediately available to modify the defined scenario structure, as necessitated by changing project assumptions.

>Generic Enhancements Made to All Visual TEAPAC Programs.

A number of additional generic enhancements and fixes have been made to the original Ver 7.00 releases of Visual TEAPAC and are collectively included as Ver 7.01 Build 07. These are documented below. Ver 7.01 Build 07 changes are free updates for Ver 7.00 licenses.

Data entry dialogs that don't apply to dummy nodes have been modified so that if they are inadvertently displayed while pointing to a dummy node they will not display unpredictable values or cause the program to crash.

The LinkTo menu has been adjusted so that if no data file path has been defined it will attempt to use the program's file path, but will not crash if neither of these is defined. The file menu options for Open, SaveAs and IntoEdit have been adjusted similarly for the condition when no data path has been defined.

A bug has been fixed that could cause a crash when clicking within an output being displayed at a zoomed-out scale on some low-resolution monitors.

:PREPASSR Ver 2.70 07NOV05

Build 28 - 28AUG06

Scroll down to 'Ver 2.70 07NOV05, Build 07 - 11NOV05' below for the major changes which were implemented for the original Visual TEAPAC release of this program.

>V7.00.28: Generic Enhancements Made to All Visual TEAPAC Programs.

A number of generic enhancements and fixes have been made to the original Ver 7.00 releases of Visual TEAPAC and are collectively included as Ver 7.00 Build 28. These are documented below and use heading lines that begin with V7.00.28:. In addition, minor program-specific changes have been made, as summarized here and detailed in the program's own specific list of updates and changes. Ver 7.00 Build 28 changes are free updates for Ver 7.00 licenses.

>V7.00.28: Number of Access Drives Increased From 5 to 10 for SITE Computations.

The permitted number of driveways which provide access to a development area for SITE computations has been increased from 5 to 10 in all TEAPAC programs, allowing greater flexibility in modeling all driveways which may exist or be proposed for a development. Along with this change comes a quicker way of entering driveway locations by combining the intersection leg direction (N/E/S/W) with the node number of the drive, such as 1N or 132E.

>V7.00.28: Input Limit for VOLFACTORS Adjusted for Consistency with Save.

The largest VOLFACTOR which can be saved in a TEAPAC data file has always been 9.99, but it's been recently noticed that the input dialog error checking permitted factors as large as 20.0 without an error, resulting in subsequent problems if an attempt was made to save such an entry. The input error checking has been modified to match the save limitation to resolve this problem. At the same time, the discussion in the documentation has been modified to reflect the same precision of save accuracy to avoid any further confusion.

>V7.00.28: Multiple Copies of a Program Can Be Open Simultaneously Again.

The source of a problem which has recently prevented multiple copies of any given program from being open at the same time, such as when comparing alternatives side-by-side. This problem has been resolved and the ability to have multiple copies open simultaneously has been re-enabled.

>V7.00.28: Minor Fixes to Drag-and-Drop Network Interface.

An occasional problem connecting T-intersections properly when bend nodes were present in the network has been resolved. Build 21 versions of the programs would notify the user of the problem immediately upon creation of a link under these circumstances. If an earlier version was used to create the network, the problem is easily detected (if it exists) with the Analyze function in the new Coordinate System section of the Setup button dialog in the main window. the problem would manifest itself with upstream connections to the wrong node and/or incorrect distances. Creation of most T-intersections were not affected by this problem.

If an old TEAPAC data file saved from a program prior to Visual TEAPAC was opened using a LinkTo, drag-to or from a command line, a crash could result when an attempt was made by the program to update the Nodelist format to the new save format. This problem has been resolved.

Build 21 - 27JUL06

Scroll down to 'Ver 2.70 07NOV05, Build 07 - 11NOV05' below for the major changes which were implemented for the original Visual TEAPAC release of this program.

>Check for Problematic Offset Entries When Producing Time-Space Diagram.

Problematic offset entries that might crash a time-space diagram plot are detected before they cause a crash.

>V7.00.21: Generic Enhancements Made to All Visual TEAPAC Programs.

A number of generic enhancements and fixes have been made to the original Ver 7.00 releases of Visual TEAPAC and are collectively included as Ver 7.00 Build 21. These are documented below and use heading lines that begin with V7.00.21:. In addition, minor program-specific changes have been made, as summarized here and detailed in the program's own specific list of updates and changes. Ver 7.00 Build 21 changes are free updates for Ver 7.00 licenses.

>V7.00.21: New Coordinate System Management Features.

A new set of options to help manage the network coordinate system for any given data file has been added to all programs that use the Visual TEAPAC drag-and-drop network editing and display (all TEAPAC programs except NOSTOP, TED and TUTOR). The options appear in a new dialog which is displayed when the Coord Sys button is pressed in the network Setup dialog.

The Coordinate System Management dialog offers three main function - 1) to Analyze the current network for possible coding errors such as improperly-connected nodes and scaling issues, 2) to create a New Coordinate System by shifting and/or scaling the current coordinate system, and 3) to compute New Link Distances based on the current coordinate system. For the Analyze function, a percentage error can be input to define the threshold which identifies potential scaling problems between the coordinate system scale and each link's entered distance, and an option can be selected to check the approach angle of each intersection leg.

One of the motivations for this new option is to be able to identify and adjust network coordinate systems from older TEAPAC programs which exercised the option to specify the units of the coordinate system in something other than feet. Although this is still possible, it can be problematic with the new drag-and-drop Visual TEAPAC interface, and is not recommended. In combination with the new Manual Distance option described below and the functions of this new dialog, old coordinate systems can be easily converted for more predictable use under the new Visual TEAPAC methods.

>V7.00.21: New Manual Distance Option Added to NETWORK Dialog Entry.

A new option can be selected in the NETWORK dialog individually for any given link of the network that indicates that the distance entered for that link is intentionally inconsistent with the network coordinate system and apparent network scale. Links which have this option selected are specifically excluded from the computation of the average coordinate system scale used and reported in the network Analysis function described above. Although not recommended, selecting this option allows a link's distance to be inconsistent with the coordinate system without adversely affecting the management and checking of the rest of the network.

In addition to this option, the NETWORK dialog also shows the calculated link distance based on the coordinate system (and the average coordinate system scale, if not equal to 1.0), and if this calculated distance is outside of the allowed error specified in the Coordinate System Management dialog, it is displayed in red. The Manual Distance option status is also shown in all data summaries which include NETWORK data, and new distances which are required due to any network editing are now always based on the coordinate distance, unless a link is previously marked for Manual Distance.

>V7.00.21: Automatic Network Relationship Checks Made.

The new Analyze function of the Coordinate System Management dialog mentioned above is invoked automatically any time a data file is Opened or Saved, or any time NETWORK or NODELOCATION information is changed (either via drag-and-drop actions or direct keyboard entry), thereby giving immediate feedback when a network definition problem could be corrupting an analysis. The Analyze function is also invoked prior to other program functions which make significant use of the spatial arrangement of the network, such as Exporting in PRENETSIM, PRESYNCHRO and PRETSPPD and FindPaths in SITE.

>V7.00.21: Frequency of Automatic Update Check Can Be Set By User.

A new user entry can now be made which controls the number of days between automatic checks for program updates. The entry can be found in the Help-Check_For_Newer_Updates menu dialog. With this new feature, the maximum frequency of automatic checks is once per day, not every time the program is run. Automatic checks can be disabled by entering a frequency of 0 days, but this is not recommended (checking for updates every 10-30 days is recommended).

>V7.00.21: Improved Initial Zoom-All View for Large Coordinate Range.

The initial Zoom-All display for a network when a file is opened has been improved for all networks, especially those with a wide range of coordinates, such that the zoom level used is more appropriate for all combinations of networks and display resolutions.

>V7.00.21: Improved Network Editing Features.

A number of enhancements have been made to network editing functions to improve the response to various user actions, as follows. If a new link connection will over-write an existing leg of a node, the user is warned and given the option to select another leg or abort. If a new link creation is aborted for any reason, any new dummy nodes created as part of that process are deleted (including clicking on the network without dragging, now deleting the single node which was previously created). If a third leg is added to a bend node as part of a new link creation, the bend node is converted to a real node (and re-numbered accordingly). If deleting a node removes one leg of a bend node, the bend is converted to an external node. Default source movements for a new link which connects existing nodes with a diagonal are determined more reliably. Left-click can be used while in the Create New Link mode to select the current node.

>V7.00.21: Fixes to SIMULATION Dialog.

The 'Use TRANSYT or PASSER Actuated Model' option of the SIMULATION dialog is now both properly selectable without any error messages, and displayed properly in the dialog, and a random glitch which garbled part of the main window Network display when the SIMULATION dialog opened has been fixed.

>V7.00.21: Make Help File Useable When a Data File is Double-clicked.

A problem locating the .HLP file when a user data file was double-clicked in Windows Explorer to open it has been fixed.

Build 14 - 20APR06

Scroll down to 'Ver 2.70 07NOV05, Build 07 - 11NOV05' below for the major changes which were implemented for the original Visual TEAPAC release of this program.

>V7.00.14: Generic Enhancements Made to All Visual TEAPAC Programs.

A number of generic enhancements and fixes have been made to the original Ver 7.00 release of Visual TEAPAC and are collectively included as Ver 7.00 Build 14. These are documented below and use heading lines that begin with V7.00.14:. Ver 7.00 Build 14 changes are free updates for Ver 7.00 licenses.

>V7.00.14: Color Selection Added to Options Menu.

The Options menu now provides a Colors option for selecting colors which are used when generating formatted output reports and the main window network display. Any selections made are retained and used during future program sessions. Most of the default colors for formatted output reports are taken from the user's desktop color scheme (DisplayProperties-Appearance), so changing the color scheme will automatically change the output colors used when the defaults are selected. All colors selected, including actual selections and defaults, are displayed in the Color management dialog produced by the Options-colors menu selection.

>V7.00.14: Browse Button Added to Select a Bitmap File.

A browse button has been added to the Network Display and Edit Management dialog which is displayed when the Setup button of the main window is pressed. This can be used to select a bitmap background file in the data file folder as an alternative to simply typing the file name in the entry field.

>V7.00.14: INTERSECTION Dialog Options Added.

The INTERSECTION dialog which is used to select the 'current' node has been significantly enhanced with several new features, as follows. A check box enables the inclusion of dummy nodes in the drop-down list so dummy nodes can be selected from the dialog; and nodes in the drop-down list can be ordered in any of three arrangements - the order they appear in the NODELIST, numeric order by node number, or alphabetic order by intersection description.

On a related note, the network display is now updated any time a new current intersection is selected, including when it is entered from the Manual Mode, when it is entered from file input, etc. Also, when a dummy node is selected as the current node, it is always highlighted in the network display, even when the zoom level is such that other dummy nodes are not displayed.

>V7.00.14: Option Added to Delete All References to Deleted Node.

When a node is deleted or cut from the network, either from the main window network display or from the NODELIST dialog, a prompt to verify the deletion is now always issued, and the prompt now includes a new option to include the deletion of all other references to the deleted node elsewhere in the network. The option to delete all references is pre-selected by default on each deletion, but can be de-selected in the prompt dialog box.

On a related note, the manipulation of nodes in the NODELIST dialog has been extended to include dummy nodes as well as real nodes, offering greater flexibility in managing the entire node list from this dialog. A problem with the Copy and Paste functions (to and from the clipboard) has also been fixed.

>V7.00.14: Improved Support for PDF Creation.

Difficulties producing PDF files for formatted output reports with certain PDF writers have been resolved.

>V7.00.14: Improved Constraint In Use of SUBSYSTEM Function.

The use of the drag function in the main window network display to create or edit a SUBSYSTEM has been constrained for better consistency with the allowed use of the SUBSYSTEM feature based on the program's licensed Usage Level. This prevents inadvertent setting of the SUBSYSTEM which then causes an error when opening a file which has this feature saved.

>V7.00.14: Maximum Link Length Increased from 9999 to 32000.

The maximum link length allowed by all TEAPAC programs has been increased from 9,999 feet (<2 miles) to 32,000 feet (> 6 miles), and a warning message is now issued if a link is created in the main window network display that exceeds this limit.

>V7.00.14: File-OpenMerge Function Enhanced.

The File-OpenMerge function has been enhanced in several ways, as follows. First, if a file being merged contains information about a bitmap file and its scaling, this information is ignored in deference to the bitmap/scaling information currently in effect in the program. The help strings for this function have also been updated, and the function is initialized more completely each time it is used to avoid overlap with responses to previous error situations.

>V7.00.14: Help File Formatting Restored to Previous Style.

The numbering of the indented paragraphs in the Notes section of Appendix B of the Help file has been restored, as appeared previously.

>V7.00.14: Minor Cleanups and Fixes Implemented.

A number of (mostly internal) cleanups and fixes have been implemented for more reliable operation of Visual TEAPAC programs. Most of these will not be noticeable to users, but a couple will resolve certain problems a few users have experienced. For example, opening an old TEAPAC data file which does not contain valid NODELOCATION entries for each intersection will not crash, and moving a bend node under certain conditions will not cause the program to close prematurely.

Build 07 - 11NOV05

>Visual TEAPAC - A Whole New Way of Seeing TEAPAC.

All 13 modules of the TEAPAC suite of programs have been upgraded to the Visual TEAPAC (Version 7) interface. Primarily, this means each program sports a much more visual input and output system to make entering and viewing data for the analysis network much easier and to make the resulting output reports clearer and easier to read. The general aspects of the two major enhancement areas, visual input and visual output, are described below, followed by the many other supporting enhancements that go along with the Visual TEAPAC upgrade.

When combined with the unparalleled 1-file, 1-click, 500-intersection, completely seamless data sharing introduced with each of the 13 TEAPAC2004 (Version 6) programs, Visual TEAPAC provides an unmatched experience of fully-integrated visual traffic engineering and traffic planning software. Read on for the details.

>Visual TEAPAC - Graphical Input and Display of Analysis Network.

All TEAPAC programs (except NOSTOP and TUTOR) now provide a drag-and-drop user interface as a way to create and/or display the study network in the main window of the program. The network can be drawn schematically or to precise scale with the aid of an underlying grid, or a bitmap can be displayed under the network to make drawing easy and/or display of the network more meaningful. The bitmap file can be an aerial photograph, a street map, as-built drawings, or any other such display which would be helpful, and this bitmap is exported to third-party program such as CORSIM and TRANSYT as permitted.

Streets can be drawn by clicking on the grid or scaled bitmap and dragging across the extent of the street section, creating analysis intersections where the new street segment crosses existing street segments. The Setup button can be used to identify the bitmap, scale the bitmap and establish an axis origin, either before the network is drawn or afterwards for pre-existing data files. Special display adjustment modes allow quick re-orientation to new bitmaps, such as when using higher-resolution bitmaps for a zoomed-in study area versus a regional area bitmap.

Dummy nodes are automatically created to orient external legs of intersections around the periphery of the study network, and internal dummy bend nodes are easily created for better network representation between analysis intersections. Proper treatment of all dummy nodes (externals and bends) are fully integrated into all of the TEAPAC application programs, as well as the eleven+ third-party programs to which TEAPAC analyses can be exported. Dummy nodes do not count against the maximum number of intersections allowed by each Usage Level.

Intersections and dummy nodes are easily moved within the network by simply dragging them across the grid or bitmap, with the option to freeze the associated link distances, or have them adjust automatically as they are moved.

The network view is easily adjusted with buttons for panning in eight directions, zoom in, zoom out, zoom all to show the entire network, and a rubber-band selection to outline the desired zoom-in area. The display of either the bitmap or the network is easily toggled on or off, as required, and the current intersection for subsequent dialog data entry or analysis is made by simply clicking the intersection. Intersections can also be selected by a right-click which opens a popup menu with all the data entry and data analysis dialogs immediately available, either in Normal View or Tabular View (use F3 to toggle the view). The popup menu also allows the renumbering or deletion of the selected node. Dragging a rubber-band selection box around a set of intersections can be used to define or add to (with Ctrl key) a subsystem of intersections for subsequent analysis.

The on-screen shortest-path FindPath assignment function of the SITE program is now performed in color directly on the main-window graphics network display, including the bitmap background, providing helpful visual cues while performing the assignment process.

The on-screen Startup Help? button provides immediate assistance for all of the functions described above. Visit www.StrongConcepts.com for examples of the new graphical input front-end now found in Visual TEAPAC.

>Visual TEAPAC - Enhanced Graphical Output Reporting.

All TEAPAC programs now feature enhanced, graphical output reporting for all results produced. Output reports now make full use of color and graphics drawing for arrows, phasing diagrams, permitted movements, time-space diagrams, intersection diagrams, cycle optimization graphs, daily count variation graphs, etc. All reports are printable on any color or black & white printer supported by Windows, including PDF writers. Any graphics output page can be copied to the clipboard as a bitmap so it can be pasted into other applications. The prior version's text-only results are still viewable alone or in parallel with the graphical results, and selected text can be copied to the clipboard or saved to a text file for subsequent use, as before. In Visual TEAPAC, you are no longer limited to the old, archaic, hard-to-read character graphics which was used when TEAPAC was originally created (what did your computer look like 30 years ago?).

All output reports use shades of color from the desktop theme/style setting to highlight the results, including report titles, report sub-sections, column headings and alternating output lines. The proportionally-spaced, sans-serif Tahoma font is used for easier readability, including right-justified numeric results in columns.

Viewing options include zoom in, zoom out, zoom all to see an entire page, rubber-band selection to zoom in, drag the page to scroll and click to re-center. Text strings can be searched for within one or many pages of results and multi-page results can be quickly scanned with controls to advance to the next or previous page, the next or previous report, or the beginning or end of all results.

Visit www.StrongConcepts.com for examples of the new graphical output back-end now found in Visual TEAPAC.

>Other Generic Enhancements Found in All Visual TEAPAC Programs.

Many other generic enhancements have been made to the Visual TEAPAC user interface which is now included in every TEAPAC program. These include:

-- Windows XP style buttons, drop-down lists, scroll windows, etc.
-- all Edit and Results menus can be accessed by right-click.
-- all demos allow at least 4 intersections to be entered and analyzed.
-- license keys are valid for any older version of the same program;
license info displays in Help-About, including site license address.
-- leading W removed from all program file names for easy recognition;
LinkTo and Menu looks for new name first, then old name with W, for
backward compatibility with older versions of other TEAPAC programs.
-- default node to renumber is the current node, not 0.
-- Startup Help button is located in main window and now in Help menu;
StartUp.txt can be modified by user with virtually unlimited size.
-- View-Network and Options-Graphics menu options have been removed.

>Program-Specific Enhancements Included in Visual TEAPAC Upgrade.

The new Permissives options for SIGNAL2000 are displayed and exported properly to all host programs. Dummy nodes are ignored for any PLOT or TIMINGS result, and bend nodes or unsignalized locations are ignored for any time-space PLOT. Node number entries for PLOT and TIMINGS are allowed up to the more recent upper bound of 999 instead of the older limit of 327. Various input error checks are skipped for dummy nodes, and dummy node conditions are reported in abbreviated form at the end of a Summary of Parameter Values produced for all intersections.

Dummy external nodes are omitted from the PASSER Export in order to minimize the number of intersections sent to PASSER (which has a maximum of 20 intersections), and links with bend nodes and/or unsignalized intersections are merged into a single link for the same reason.

PREPASSR output reports which are significantly enhanced by the new color-graphics results produced by Visual TEAPAC include: all phasing displays, clearly showing permitted movements, either in HCM 'by-phase' style or ring-based 'by-movement' style; and the full-color time-space diagram which shows all phases and clearance intervals, directional offsets and band widths.

:PREPASSR Ver 2.61 23MAY05

Scroll down to 'Ver 2.60 08SEP04, Build 06 - 22SEP04' below for the major changes which were implemented for the original TEAPAC2004 release of this program.

Build 12 - 30SEP05

>Field Width Error Detection Modified for More Useful Performance.

A new error check was recently introduced to warn a user that too many characters for an input field had been entered and that the entry would be truncated. The aggressive response to this condition (ignoring the entry entirely) has been toned back, now accepting the truncated input with a similar warning. This reduces the potential for the need to re-type an entry which may be perfectly fine in its truncated form, or require only minor editing to correct instead of complete re-entry. The new error check has also been eliminated for any entries of the GROUPTYPES dialog, most of whose possible entry values can typically exceed the actual allocated input field width.

Another effect of the overly-aggressive error check was that certain drop-down list values in a number of dialog boxes had pre-programmed entries which exceeded the input field width, thus preventing them from executing properly. These included drop-down lists in the OUTPUT, CONDITIONS, GENERATION and PATHDISTRIBUTION dialogs. The field widths of all of these entries have been modified to accept the full drop-down list pre-programmed entries.

>Extra Warning Message Eliminated When Opening New Files.

If a user is warned about unsaved data or results values when a new file is about to be opened, with an option to first save the values, certain circumstances could cause the same message to be re-displayed a second time, regardless of the user response to the first message. This duplicate warning message has been eliminated.

>Debug Value Removed from Display for Text Search Function.

A spurious debug value was inadvertently left in the production version of the program, displaying each time a text string is searched for in any output window or edit window. The debug display has been removed.

>Key Files Are Now Valid for All Prior Versions of Program.

The key file processing logic has been enhanced to allow a given key file to be used not only for various builds and minor updates for the licensed version, but also for any version of the program prior to the licensed version. This minimizes the hassle of multiple key file management when multiple versions of a program are being used, for example, to maintain consistency in results throughout the course of a project which was begun with an older version of a given program that has been updated.

Build 11- 22AUG05

>Optimized Timings Can be Imported When Entry Style is Defined 'By-Movement'.

Optimized timings can now be Imported when the timing entry style is 'By-Movement'. Previously, this was not possible.

Build 10 - 04AUG05

>Print Problem Resolved from Tabular View.

Difficulties experienced by some users attempting to print results when using the Tabular View have been resolved.

>Improved Phasing Display in Dialog Boxes.

The currently-selected signal phasing for an intersection which is displayed in some dialog boxes has been improved so that improperly-coded permitted left turns display differently than expected to indicate the error in coding.

Build 00 - 23MAY05

>Enhancements Made to Time-Space Diagram.

The default scale for PLOTting a time-space diagram has been changed from 100 feet/line to 0, the new default of 0 being a code that instructs PREPASSR to determine a scale automatically which will include the entire time-space diagram on a single page.

>New Message Warns User That Calculated and/or Imported Values Have Not Been Saved.

A new message has been created which warns a user when calculated and/or imported values will be lost when the program is closed or File-New is used. This provides a check against inadvertently losing data results which could otherwise be saved in a file for future use or use by another program. The existence of unsaved calculated and/or imported values is indicated in the window caption with an asterisk (*) in the same fashion as changed user entry values. In the case of PREPASSR, the protected values are any imported CYCLES, GREENTIMES, YELLOWTIMES and/or OFFSETS. A similar message is now issued when File-Open or Reset [Parameters] is used when edited, calculated and/or imported values have not been saved.

>Edit Window Contents Can Be Printed, Including Line Numbers.

The contents of the TED Edit window, either within TED or the built-in edit window in any TEAPAC program, can now be printed using the normal print menu or toolbar buttons, including line numbers.

>Global Entry of Additional Sequence Codes Now Includes All Extra Codes.

The entry of additional sequence codes for intersection 0 (to be assigned to all intersections) has been expanded so that all extra sequence codes will be assigned to all intersections, not just the first extra sequence code. This allows added flexibility when using this global entry feature for SEQUENCES.

>VOLADDITIONALS Values Now Allowed to be Negative.

The entry or computed values for VOLADDITIONALS is now allowed to have negative values, with a complete input range permitted from -9999 to 9999. This is primarily to afford the possibility of re-assignments of traffic to result in a net reduction of volume for individual movements, either by manual entry or computations from SITE. In the case of SITE, this also means that ROUNDing of results can create small negative VOLADDITIONALS in locations that receive little or no new traffic and where final volumes are rounded down (this is appropriate and to be expected).

>LinkTo followed by Another LinkTo Performs Properly.

Multiple LinkTo operations can now be performed smoothly under all conditions without limitation. Previously it was observed that under certain conditions, one LinkTo followed by another LinkTo could cause certain problems successfully connecting to the next desired program.

>Better Graphics for Phasing Display and Bitmap Buttons.

The arrows used to represent phasing in various dialogs have been improved in quality and appearance, and if timings for phasings are defined by-movement instead of by-phase, the by-movement phasing diagrams are now shown in every relevant dialog. In addition, the pan and zoom button bitmaps within the View-Network display have been improved for better clarity.

>Option to Select Pages to Print; Page 0 for Current Page.

An option has been added to the Print-Setup dialog which allows the selection of specific pages to be printed instead of always printing all pages in the output window. Selection of page 0 will print only the current output page (the page which contains the insertion point cursor).

>View-Network Works Without Defined Network Distances.

Previously it was not possible to perform the View-Network function unless all NETWORK distances had been entered. This was due to the function's attempt to establish a scale factor between the network distances entered and the potentially arbitrary coordinate system used. Now, if distances are not entered, View-Network simply assumes the scale factor is 1.

>Warnings Issued If Too Many Characters Entered or Number Too Large in an Input Field.

If a user enters more characters in a dialog's input field than the dialog expects or can process, a warning is now issued and the entire entry is ignored, rather than just ignoring the extra characters. This allows for better understanding by the user that the entry may not have been processed correctly. The F5 Refresh button should be used in all cases to see the current dialog values after the warning. On a similar note, if an entry has a numeric value too large for the intended internal variable, this condition is also noted with a message rather than allowing the possibility of a more catastrophic reaction by the program at a later point.

:PREPASSR Ver 2.60 08SEP04

Scroll down to 'Build 06 - 22SEP04' below for the major changes which were implemented for the original TEAPAC2004 release of this program.

Build 07 - 07DEC04

>Separator Lines Inserted In Data File.

Blank lines are now inserted between intersections and site generation data in TEAPAC2004 data files to aid in distinguishing the parts of the data file when being viewed as a text file.

>Last Output Window Contents Saved in Text File Upon Program Closure.

The contents of the last Output Window display are now always saved in a temporary file (TMPxxx.OUT, where xxx is the program's abbreviated name) when a TEAPAC2004 program exits, thus leaving the last output produced in a text file for review and post-processing, if desired. The file is located in the folder which contains the authoring program (usually C:\TEAPAC) and is over-written the next time the same program exits. This feature also allows viewing of results created by a scripted control file which contains the Stop command, as well as multiple, linked control files which link to each other or are run from a batch command file. Also, a change has been made to make sure that all output generated by launching a control file from a command line is captured in the Output Window and/or the TMPxxx.OUT file. Lastly, if an Output Window is open when a Stop command is encountered in a control file, that Output Window is now always closed automatically.

>Automatic Closure of Save Message.

The message which is displayed when File-Save is used is now closed automatically in all cases after a brief display to confirm that the save has occurred as desired. Only Advanced file save messages are displayed until closed manually (unless the automatic closure checkbox is selected). Any save action directed from a control file is also closed automatically after a brief display in order to allow unattended operation.

>View-Network Shows Exiting External Legs.

The schematic network diagram created by the View-Network menu will now show external intersection legs for one-way street segments departing from an intersection.

>Longer Window Caption File Path Display.

The number of characters used to display the current file name(s), path and save status has been increased so that more of the file path is visible in the top caption line of the main window.

>Tabular View Caption Overflow Fixed to Prevent Corruption of Node# Display.

A problem in the caption display of the Tabular View window has been fixed so it no longer corrupts the display of the Current Node in the main window.

>File Functions Restored in TEAPAC Menu.

The 'Use this file:' function has been restored to the TEAPAC Menu so a file can be found by browsing, dragging to the Menu window, or double-clicking in Explorer. Then use of that file can be transferred to any TEAPAC program in the Menu. This function was inadvertantly disabled in the initial TEAPAC2004 release.

Build 06 - 22SEP04

>Summary of TEAPAC2004 Release of PREPASSR.

After 2 years in development, the TEAPAC2004 version of PREPASSR has been released as Ver 2.60. The highlights of the changes since its prior release include the following:

Completely seamless, one-click, one-file exchange of all input and results with SIGNAL2000, all other PRE-processors, SITE, TURNS and WARRANTS, including calculations of HCM satflows, optimized timings, peak-period turn counts and estimated site traffic.

New volume adjustment inputs to allow factoring volumes and adding additional volumes on a movement-by-movement basis.

New sensitivity controls for global testing of factored volumes, additive volumes, factored satflows, minimums, clearances, etc.

Complete implementation of the enhanced TEAPAC2004 (Ver 6) user interface, as described below.

>New Volume Adjustment Inputs Provide Sensitivity Analysis Flexibility.

A new input called VOLFACTORS has been added that allows a volume adjustment factor to be provided for each individual movement of each intersection. Each volume entry is multiplied by this factor, with the option of further providing a number of years the factor should first be compounded. This feature provides the ability to easily test various traffic growth factor scenarios, as well as sensitivity analysis for the base volume entry.

Another new input called VOLADDITIONALS has been added that allows a volume adjustment value to be provided for each individual movement of each intersection. Each volume entry is adjusted by adding this additional volume, with the option of further providing a single factor for each intersection which is first multiplied by the additional volume before the it is added to the base volume. This feature provides the ability to test additive growth scenarios, in addition to the factored growth scenarios allowed by VOLFACTORS above, such as when evaluating site traffic development scenarios. The VOLADDITIONALS factor can also be used to easily 'turn off' the additional volume by using a factor of zero, and 'turn back on' the additional volumes. VOLADDITIONALS are computed directly by SITE for site traffic impact scenarios and saved in data files for immediate analysis and optimization by other TEAPAC programs.

>Browse Button Added to Import Dialog.

A Browse button has been added to the Import dialog to permit easier identification of the PASSER results file which is to be used for Import, especially when the default AUTO option is not selected. This button opens a normal file-select dialog, and when a file is selected it is placed in the Import dialog entry field without the need for the user to type the actual file name.

>T2004v6: TEAPAC2004 Interface Enhancements Found In All Programs.

TEAPAC2004 (Ver 6) includes a multitude of enhancements which are part of the generic user interface found in all TEAPAC programs (some do not apply to NOSTOP, TED or TUTOR, for readily-apparent reasons). All of the generic enhancements are listed below with heading lines that begin with T2004v6:.

>T2004v6: One Common Data File Supports All TEAPAC Programs.

The most significant and obvious change made to each TEAPAC program in Version 6 is that all programs now share a single, common data file structure that contains all of the data entries used by all TEAPAC programs. This means that any TEAPAC program (except NOSTOP and TUTOR) can open any file from any other TEAPAC program, make changes to any of the data values it contains, and re-Save the file with complete retention of all data values for future use by any other TEAPAC program.

The first implication of this major fundamental change is that the concept of File-OpenShare of earlier TEAPAC programs is no longer needed since the sharing of TEAPAC files among TEAPAC programs is now fundamental and automatic. File-OpenShare has been re-named to File-OpenMerge/Share to better reflect its current function, to merge the content of multiple files, and can still be used to read and merge the content of files from older versions of SIGNAL97, SIGNAL2000 (Ver 1), SITE, TURNS and WARRANTS -- OpenMerge is automatic when reading these files. Also, the warning message when saving to a file created by one of these other programs has been removed, again because this function is now standard procedure and has no risk of loss of data.

The second implication of this change is that any values computed by one program and to be used by another (such as peak-period volumes from TURNS, HCM satflows from SIGNAL2000, optimized signal timings and phasings from SIGNAL2000, projected traffic from SITE, etc.) need only be saved into the data file with File-Save, then the next program launched with the same file using the LinkTo menu. A single click positions the user in the next program ready to do the analysis of that program.

Lastly, all programs (except NOSTOP and TUTOR) now have the ability to store all of this data for up to 500 intersections in a single file.

>T2004v6: LinkTo Menu In All TEAPAC Programs Includes All TEAPAC Programs.

All TEAPAC programs (except NOSTOP and TUTOR) now contain the LinkTo menu which now provides immediate access to all other TEAPAC programs with a single click which causes the current data file to be re-opened in that program.

>T2004v6: LinkTo Function Now Allows Direct Link to Host Programs.

A new function of the LinkTo menu has been added which allows direct linkage to the six host programs which are supported by the six TEAPAC preprocessors. These are PRETRANSYT for TRANSYT, PREPASSR for PASSER, PRENETSIM for CORSIM, PRESYNCHRO for Synchro/SimTraffic, PRETSPPD for TS-PP/Draft, and now PRENOSTOP for NOSTOP. Since all programs have access to the control directives for all the preprocessors, this means, for example, that a TRANSYT run can be made directly from SIGNAL2000 with a LinkTo-TRANSYT (assuming a licensed copy of PRETRANSYT is installed on the system).

>T2004v6: Global Input Option for Most Intersection Inputs.

A powerful new feature has been added to all TEAPAC programs that allows the value of a single data entry to be made to all intersections in the NODELIST (or the SUBSYSTEM, if one is defined). This is done when Intersection 0 is selected, and the user is first warned of the pending global entry action and followed by an audible beep when the global entry is made. The warning message can be omitted for future such actions, if desired.

Examples of uses for this new feature include the following: Enter a common cycle length or cycle range for SIGNAL2000 optimization of all signals; designate a full SIGNAL2000 phasing optimization for all signals; set the new volume adjustment factor or number of years for compounding a growth factor for all intersections for sensitivity analysis; enable or disable the new additional volumes entry for all intersections; designate a common peak hour factor for specific movements or all movements of all intersections; set the minimum or required clearance values for optimization at all signals; set the satflow adjustment factor for all signals to perform sensitivity analysis; etc. The possibilities of this new feature are virtually endless.

>T2004v6: View-Network Function Improved with Easier Pan & New Zoom.

The View-Network function has been added to all programs (except NOSTOP and TUTOR), and has been greatly improved in functionality regarding the ability to pan up/down and left/right, as well as new functions for zoom in/out and selecting a view area of the network connections and underlying bitmap with the mouse.

>T2004v6: Output/Edit Window Major Enhancements.

The Output and Edit Windows have been enhanced with menus and toolbar buttons which provide the ability to Find a user-entered text string, find the next output report and find the next page of results. A button also allows moving backwards thru the output to the previous output page. In the Edit Window, an additional Find & Replace function has also been provided. Also, the current line number of the cursor is displayed in the status line of the window, and the ^A function now performs the standard 'SelectAll' function instead of copying the entire window to the clipboard.

>T2004v6: Toolbar Button Provided for Intersection Selection.

A toolbar button has been provided in the main window next to the +/- buttons which provides direct access to the Intersection dialog to select the 'current' intersection, allowing quick access to this common function without the need to use the menus.

>T2004v6: Intersection/Type Description Listed in Dialog Caption.

If an intersection description has been provided for the current intersection (via the Intersection dialog), this description is displayed in the caption of any intersection data dialog in addition to the intersection number. For traffic impact studies with SITE, the same function is true for the current distribution type. These number and description displays are now also included in the caption of the Tabular View window.

>T2004v6: Check For Internet Update Function Provided.

A new function has been provided in the Help menu of every TEAPAC program that allows the user to have the program check the internet for any available downloadable updates. This function can be set to automatically check for updates every time the program is launched. If updates are found, this fact is displayed along with the status of the update (free or if a fee is involved and what that fee is), as well as a link to a complete description of what functionality changes the update includes, the ability to launch an email requesting a new key for a paid update or a quote for an upgrade. Options to view a complete price list online, to launch an email requesting technical support, and to go to the Strong Concepts main web page are also provided. This feature was partially implemented in the most recent downloads of several TEAPAC programs and accepted with great enthusiasm.

>T2004v6: INTERSECTION Dialog Includes Option to Renumber a Node and All Refs.

The INTERSECTION dialog now contains a feature to renumber any intersection in the NODELIST to any value not currently in the NODELIST. When selected, all references to the old node number anywhere else in the network are also updated, making renumbering a snap.

>T2004v6: Save Remembers Selected Intersection/Type for Subsequent Open.

When data files are saved, a directive is placed at the end of the file which remembers the 'current' intersection and current distribution type so that these positions can be reset when the file is subsequently re-opened by either the same program or any other TEAPAC program.

>T2004v6: Error Message Help Leaves Dialogs Open so Errant Entries Can Be Seen.

When Help for an error or warning message is displayed, the dialog entry which caused the error or warning is now left open so the entered values can be inspected in relation to the help advise given. Also, a note is provided in the message to use the Refresh button to see the dialog with the actual current values which are likely to not reflect the entry attempted (which caused the error or warning).

>T2004v6: Errors Contain Cancel Button to Abort File-Open or Control File.

When errors or warnings are issued as a result of reading a data file, a Cancel button is now provided which allows the user to abort continued attempts to read the file. This is now a convenient way to halt attempted processing of a file which is clearly not what was intended, or for power users, a way to kill a control file which has gone off the deep end.

>T2004v6: OUTPUT Dialog Contains Entries for All Programs.

The OUTPUT dialog is a common dialog name which has had different content for most TEAPAC programs. This conflict and impediment for combining all the TEAPAC data into a single file for TEAPAC2004 has been resolved by having a common OUTPUT dialog for all programs which contains the OUTPUT parameters for all TEAPAC programs. In the manual mode and control files, this involves the addition of a new parameter #1 which is the name of the program for which the following values apply, and thus all OUTPUT parameters for all programs are stored in the file and displayed in the dialog.

>T2004v6: Wording on Dialogs Used by Multiple Programs Improved.

The wording on dialogs which are used by multiple programs in TEAPAC2004 have been clarified so that it is more apparent what the relevance is to the current program in which the dialog is found.

>T2004v6: NODELIST Entry Protected from Change in Tabular View.

The only safe place to change the NODELIST after it has been entered is in the Normal View NODELIST dialog, so the NODELIST entry in the Tabular View has been greyed and protected from change to avoid unintended changes and possible disastrous results.

>T2004v6: Options-Setup Uses Browse for Folder, not Browse for File.

The Browse button in the Options-Setup dialog now produces a Browse-for-Folder dialog instead of the File-Open dialog so it is more clear what the function will return.

>T2004v6: Dialog Actions Re. ROUTEs with 9+ Nodes Fixed, Including Save.

Certain problems with ROUTES which contained more than 8 nodes have been fixed, including saving these route definitions.

>T2004v6: Recent File Menu Option Works Under All Windows Platforms.

Display of recently used files in the File menu has presented problems under certain Windows platforms, and thus an option has been provided to turn this display off so recent files are accessed only thru the File-RecentFiles dialog. This problem has been fixed so recent files can be displayed in the File menu on any Windows platform, and thus the default condition for this feature has been changed from No to Yes.

>T2004v6: Command-Line Control File Enhancements.

When a user has set a TEAPAC program to start in the Tabular View, ASK commands in command-line control files could not be used. This limitation has been eliminated so this feature can be used, if desired.

The output window for output generated by a command-line control file now appears in front of the main window so it is immediately visible without the need to click it to bring it to the front.

A new /x option has been added at the end of a command-line file name which instructs the program to open the command-line file as File #x (the default is File #1, as before). This allows the data file which a control file #2-5 opens to be designated as File #1 so that it is the file which will be open for subsequent File-Save operations from the File menu. Opening command-line control files as #2-5 instead of #1 is now the recommended practice.

>T2004v6: -X Entry for INTERSECTION Number Allowed As Positional Input.

The intersection number on an INTERSECTION command line or dialog is now allowed to be a negative number between -1 and -N where N is the number of intersections in the NODELIST. When this is the case, the intersection selected is the i-th node of the NODELIST when -i is used. The expected use of this feature is to allow REPEAT loops in control files to easily sequence through all the nodes of the NODELIST when the NODELIST is not in numerical order and/or not a sequential list of nodes from 1 to N.

>T2004v6: TEAPAC Menu Enhancements.

A new File menu in the TEAPAC Menu shows recent files which have been used by the program; a new Options menu allows program folder setup for all of the third-party programs supported by the Menu; a new Help menu can list recently installed changes and check the internet for updates; default support for VISSIM 4 and TRANSYT-7F Release 10 is provided.

TEAPAC files which are double-clicked to be launched thru the TEAPAC Menu now open into the menu only without launching the program that created the file (since any file can now be used by any program, this old action is no longer appropriate).

>T2004v6: Printable On-screen Manuals Available as PDF Downloads.

The full documentation for each TEAPAC program has always been directly available as the on-screen manual which also serves as the context-sensitive Help document. Options for obtaining printed/bound copies of this document have also been available at an additional cost. Now, in addition, this document is available as a downloadable PDF file which provides the ability to print a copy locally, as well as search the entire document for user-defined strings.

:PREPASSR Ver 2.02 22NOV03

Build 16 - 16JUL04

>Fix for >100 Nodes in NODELIST and SUBSYSTEM Dialogs of 500 Node Version.

A problem has been fixed which could cause difficulties displaying a node list with more than 100 nodes in the NODELIST and SUBSYSTEM dialogs of the 500-node version of the program.


>Automatic Check for Updates Added When Connected to Internet.

A new feature has been added which allows an automatic check for updates via the internet any time the program is started when an internet connection is present. The automatic check can be disabled from the Help menu using the CheckForUpdates option. The same menu selectiion can be used to manually check for updates, to review details about any available updates, to download updates, to see update prices (if they are not free), to request a quote for updates and to order certain updates.

>Accelerator Key Definitions Added to Tooltip Help for Dialog Buttons.

Tooltip help strings for certain dialog box buttons have been updated to include the accelerator keys which can be used in lieu of the buttons.

Build 14 - 29MAR04

>Installation Setup Modified for Proper Creation of Shortcuts.

A change has been made to the configuration of the new MSI installation setup now used by most TEAPAC programs. Now when shortcuts are created in the start menu or the desktop during installation, they are configured properly with the installation folder set as the 'Start In' folder (Working Directory) for the shortcut. In recent TEAPAC releases which use the new MSI installation system, this configuration option was not selected, resulting in a possible problem when running the program in locating the Help file (on-screen manual, Help-Contents menu, Help buttons and F1 key) and/or the Recent Changes file (Help-RecentChanges menu).

Build 12 - 03MAR04

>Better Default System Cycle Length Used.

The 'system cycle length' or 'cycle optimization range' for a TRANSYT analysis is determined by the cycle information provided for the intersection which is designated as the MASTERNODE intersection. In the event that the MASTERNODE is not defined, or if it points to an intersection not in the current SUBSYSTEM, the program now uses the first intersection of the SUBSYSTEM rather than the first intersection of the NODELIST to define the default 'system cycle length' or 'cycle optimization range'.

The same determination of the default cycle length is made when identifying the sub-folder where PASSER results will be imported from.

>Further Enhancements to Ver 5.12 Interface.

The Ver 5.12 TEAPAC interface found in most TEAPAC programs has been further refined with additional features to aid in the analysis process. These include: 1) saving the current intersection in the data file so that when the file is re-opened, the same current intersection is re-established (rather than always being pointed to the last intersection in the Nodelist), 2) providing the ability to scale a bitmap background for a single intersection analysis by right-clicking on a point 100 feet from the intersection, and 3) providing a Clear button on the Subsytem and Route dialogs so that the lists displayed can be removed with a single click.

Build 10 - 31DEC03

>Imported Timings Treated Properly if Input Timings were Decimal Percentages.

Imported timings from PASSER are always displayed in units of seconds. If prior user input timings were decimal percentages (sec/sec), the imported timings in seconds would not be treated properly except for a Save and subsequent Open action. Now the internal flags are set properly to indicate that the imported timingsare in seconds instead of the original secconds/second, so any subsequent analyses will be performed correctly.

>Default Path Set to C:\PASSER II-02.

In the event that a PREPASSR configuration file is not present (WPREPASS.CFG), the default path used for PASSER-II has been changed from C:\P290 to C:\PASSER II-02.

>Pending New PRENOSTOP Program Added to LinkTo Menu.

A pending new TEAPAC program call PRENOSTOP which interfaces the NOSTOP program to the data of other TEAPAC programs such as this program and SIGNAL2000 has been added to the LinkTo menu.

>Further Enhancements to Ver 5.1x Interface.

If a NODELIST entry is read from a Shared file, the new NODELIST is appended to the current NODELIST instead of replacing it. This effectively allows the merging of separate data files to create a larger system. Caution must be used when one file is already open in a program and another file is opened that was not created by the current program, since this file will automatically be Open-Shared, and thus appended if it has a different NODELIST.

If an INTERSECTION entry is read from a Shared file and is not in the current NODELIST, it is automatically appended to the end of the NODELIST. As with NODELIST above, this makes the Shared function effectively an automatic Merge function.

Duplicate nodes encountered in a NODELIST entry or an appended NODELIST are ignored.

The File-OpenShared menu item has been changed to File-OpenMerge/Shared to better indicate the fuction which this type of Open normally performs.

When a LinkTo function prompts the user to save changed data before the LinkTo is performed and a new path/file name is given, this path/file name is used by the LinkTo function. If no file has been provided, the LinkTo function performs properly with a linkage to the next rpogram, but without any data transfer.

:PREPASSR Ver 2.00 02FEB03

Build 54 - 05JUN03

>New Build for Consistency with New SIGNAL2000 and PRESYNCHRO.

Build 54 has been created for consistent numbering with new builds of SIGNAL2000 and PRESYNCHRO. No other changes have been made to the program in this build.

Build 52 - 04JUN03

>EXPORT AUTO Allows Data Files Located In Paths with Spaces in Name for P2-02.

EXPORT AUTO did not communicate properly with PASSER II-02 in Build 50 when user data files were located in folders which had spaces in the path name. This condition is now handled properly.

>Convert ByPhase to ByMov Uses Reqclearances to Maintain Individual Y+AR.

The Convert button on the GREENTIMES and YELLOWTIMES dialogs has been modified so that when ByPhase timings are converted to ByMovement, the REQCLEARANCES values for each movement are used to define the ByMovement clearances rather than using the ByPhase phase clearances. This permits individual movements to maintain distinctly different clearance times, regardless of how many timnes the Convert button is used. To this end, entries of ByMovement clearance times in the YELLOWTIMES dialog are always transferred directly to the REQCLEARANCES dialog, and REQCLEARANCES entries are transferred directly to the YELLOWTIMES dialog if timings are ByMovement.

>Dummy Nodes Are Ignored by TIMINGS Report.

Any intersection identified as a 'Dummy node' in the INTERSECTION description field will be omitted from the TIMINGS results, along with unsignalized intersections which are already omitted.

Build 50 - 08MAY03

>Support for New PASSER II-02 Program.

PREPASSR Version 2 is an upgrade that supports the new PASSER II-02 Windows version of PASSER-II. This includes the new executable file names and launching syntax, default installation folders, and new input and output file name extensions and locations.

202 is now the default version of PASSER to Export to as found in the Edit-System-Output menu. When opening old data files which have 290 or 287 in this field for the older verions of PASSER-II, the value must be changed to 202 in order to let PREPASSR know of the user's intent to Export to PASSER II-02.

When Export AUTO is used, PASSER II-02 will be launched automatically with the PASSER data file created. PASSER II-02 will provide a warning that the data file format and extension will be changed from .DAT to .P2I (press the Yes button) followed by advice about details regarding the computations of Satflows (press the Ok button). When PASSER II-02 opens, press the Run button to generate the PASSER results.

Results from PASSER II-02 optimizations can be imported back into PREPASSR, as before, if the PASSER II-02 run was originally generated by PREPASSR. This includes whatever variables were allowed to be optimized according to the Optimize dialog selection in PREPASSR, including optimized offsets, splits and cycle lengths. Import AUTO should be used to import results of an Export AUTO.

>Seamless Integration with SIGNAL2000, PRETRANSYT, PRENETSIM, PRESYNCHRO and PRETSPPD.

The option to enter and manage SIGNAL2000 data which is not required by PREPASSR has been added to PREPASSR with the new Edit-SIGNAL2000 menu which now makes PREPASSR data files completely compatible with SIGNAL2000. This allows a seamless exchange of information between PREPASSR and SIGNAL2000 Version 2, as well as the other TEAPAC preprocessors. To this end, a new LinkTo menu has been created in PREPASSR that allows immediate transfer of control to SIGNAL2000, PRETRANSYT and PRENETSIM, as well as the two new TEAPAC programs PRESYNCHRO and PRETSPPD. This transfer of control includes closing the current data file, with a prompt to save unsaved data, and passing that file to the new program. This permits immediate use of SIGNAL2000 or any of the other preprocessor functions with virtually no overhead of data file or program management. This is due primarily to the new multi-intersection feature added to SIGNAL2000 Version 2 and the presence of all SIGNAL2000 data in PREPASSR.

>Maximum Network Size Increased to 500 Intersections with Improved Management Tools.

The maximum size of a PREPASSR network has been increased from 100 to 500 intersections with the addition of a new Usage Level 3. All Usage Levels use a new NODELIST dialog to manage the list of intersection numbers which have been used and a new INTERSECTION dialog to select the 'current' intersection from the NODELIST. The current intersection can be selected by using the drop-down list in the INTERSECTION dialog, or by 'walking' through the NODELIST with the new +/- buttons found on the main toolbar and relevant entry dialogs. The current intersection is displayed in the status bar at the bottom of the main window. Intersection numbers can now range from 1 to 999.

New intersections can be added to the network by first adding it with the NODELIST dialog, then selecting it from the INTERSECTION drop-down list (or typing it in the INTERSECTION combo box). As a shortcut, the new intersection number can be typed (with a description) in the INTERSECTION combo box, in which case the user will be prompted with an option to add the intersection to the end of the NODELIST automatically.

INTERSECTION 0 is a selection which represents all intersections in the NODELIST. When this is selected, certain actions like View-Summary will be performed for all intersections. Otherwise, View-Summary will now summarise the data only for the current intersection.

>View-Network Menu Added to Display Connected Intersection Network.

This new menu option permits viewing the interconnections between intersections which have been defined, primarily in the NETWORK dialogs. The graphical display shows all of the relationships between intersections which have been established in a proportional diagram layout that can be scrolled across the entire network area. If desired, a bitmap of an aerial photograph or map of the study area can be defined as a background for this display to show the study network in relation to the information reflected by that background. The bitmap should be stored in the same folder as the associated data file, and should have the same name as the data file, but with a .BMP extension. An example bitmap background is supplied with the sample data file PREPASSR.FOR.

>Explicit Ability to Represent Nema-style Controllers.

When entering or viewing controller timings, a new Convert button appears on the GREENTIMES and YELLOWTIMES dialogs which allows the user to select the style of entry or view, either 'By Phase' which is the traditional HCM method, or 'By Movement' which is more similar to the way timings are used on NEMA and other dual-ring controllers. If any timings are present, they will be converted to the other format at the same time, including YELLOWTIMES if the GREENTIMES dialog is displayed, and vice versa. When timings are Converted, the conversion will also include reviewing the allowed SEQUENCES list and moving the appropriate sequence code to the top of the list according to the timings present.

Allowing timings 'By Movement' makes it apparent that for certain overlap phases, phase lengths which are apparently negative in the 'By Phase' method are, in fact, perfectly valid timings for dual-ring controllers, as long as the negative value of the overlap phase greentime does not exceed the yellowtime of that same phase. This permits a wider range of timings to be represented by the traditional 'By Phase' (HCM) methodology. 'By Movement' timings are not allowed when special phasings represented by negative SEQUENCE codes are used.

>More Generic and Consistent Definition of Cycle Lengths.

For the compatibility with SIGNAL2000 described above, as well as future compatibility with other traffic modeling software, cycle lengths are now defined individually for each intersection of the network, instead of providing the one cycle length for the system offered previously by PREPASSR. When a 'system cycle length' is required, the cycle defined for the intersection indicated as the MASTERNODE is used. In the case where a MASTERNODE has not been defined, the first node of the NODELIST is assumed to be the masternode. This change in cycle length definition will still accommodate the old style of system cycle definition which might be encountered when opening or LOADing an old PREPASSR data file by assigning this system cycle to each intersection defined in the NODELIST read from the file.

>Exclusive Pedestrian Phase Considered from New PEDTIME Entry.

The new SIGNAL2000 data support which has been added (as described above) includes the possible definition of an exclusive pedestrian phase via the PEDTIME entry. If this is used, PREPASSR recognizes this entry when displaying the phasing with TIMINGS by showing the word PEDPHASE in the vertical divider line which separates the two vehicle phases which surround the exclusive ped phase. In addition, the existence of the ped phase is accounted for when calculating offsets for every interval displayed in the TIMINGS report.

>Definition of Up to 9 Special Phasings Allowed.

Prior versions of PREPASSR allowed up to 5 special phasings to be defined by referencing SEQUENCE codes -1 to -5. With the increase in the maximum number of intersections to 500, the number of special phasings allowed has been increased to 9 through use of the SEQUENCE codes -1 to -9.

>Phasing Diagrams in Dialogs use Better Arrow Representations of Movements.

Arrows shown in dialog boxes depicting turning movements have been improved in design so they are easier on the eye and more clearly depict the movement intended. In addition, permitted movements in phasing diagrams in dialogs are depicted with dashed lines for added clarity. Also, arrows have been added to some dialogs for improved clarity.

>Preview of Pending TEAPAC Interface Version 6 Changes (Interface Version 5.11).

A number of generic enhancements which will appear in all TEAPAC programs as TEAPAC Interface Version 6 are being previewed in PREPASSR Version 2. Licensees of this version will be entitled to receive free updates to the Version 6 release when it is made official. These enhancements are described below:

>Output and Edit Window Management Changes.

The output window has been vastly enhanced with a number of important new features which the user will find helpful. These are: 1) The output window can be left open to accept additional subsequent output in situations where having all the output together in one place will make its assessment easier. 2) The maximum size of output held in the output window has been increased from a nominal amount to a virtually unlimited amount, limited only by available memory. 3) Toolbar buttons and status-bar/tool-tip help has been added for all output window menu items. 4) The output generated by long calculations or multi-intersection computations can be viewed progressively in the output window as they are generated, rather than needing to wait until they are all completed. 5) In control files, the HEADING -1 command can be used to force a display of results generated so far. 6) The output window is sizable and moveable, and the size and location is remembered throughout the remainder of the session. Most of these changes apply to the Edit window as well.

>Moveable Dialogs, Location Remembered.

All dialog boxes and message boxes are now moveable to any location on the screen, and the location is remembered for future dialogs throughout the remainder of the session. This allows for custom organization of the user's desktop which matches the immediate needs of his/her analysis. This can be particularly helpful in highly multi-tasked environments, on ultra-high resolution screens, and on systems with dual monitors.

>New Refresh Button for Normal and Tabular Views of Visual Mode.

A new Refresh button has been placed on virtually every dialog box for the purpose of refreshing the dialog with the current values in each entry cell, in the event there is any confusion about whether a given entry has been accepted. This is particularly helpful after certain errors have been encountered or in a Tabular View display where one entry may change another entries values without changing the display (eg, when a WIDTH entry changes a LANES entry in a different place of the dialog). It can also be used to reset an action dialog's entries to the defaults after first being changed by the user.

>Warning of Possible Incompatible Advanced File Usage.

Advanced users of multiple files and/or multiple data sets in a single file are warned if a normal, simple Windows file command such as File-Save is used that appears inconsistent with the prior advanced file usage for the currently opened files. This is intended to prevent inadvertent saving of data on top of unintended places in advanced usage files.

>Help Available for Errors and Warnings from Manual Mode.

The Help button has been enabled in error and warning boxes which are issued as a result of actions initiated from the Manual Mode. Previously, these helps were not available.

:PREPASSR Ver 1.61 25APR02

Build 16 - 14JUL02

>Updated Build for Consistency with Release of Build 16 of Full TEAPAC Ver 5 System.

Build 16 of PREPASSR has been created for consistency with the complete release of Build 16 of the full TEAPAC Ver 5 system (which includes the generic TEAPAC2000 interface update to Ver 5.02). Since these updates were included in the previous build of PREPASSR, no changes other than the build number have occurred for this program.

Build 00 - 25APR02

>Many New Entries Allow Advanced Modeling.

A vast array of new entries have been added to the inputs which are used to describe intersection conditions. These match inputs by the same labels allowed in the SIGNAL2000 program, and thus can be input directly from SIGNAL2000 data files. They also match corresponding updates in PRETRANSYT and PRENETSIM so the same information can be shared with these programs as well. These new entries are primarily for enhanced modeling possibilities in PRETRANSYT and PRENETSIM, but the same input changes are made here in PREPASSR for purposes of data sharing. The new inputs allowed are described briefly here. The new inputs are also displayed by the View-Summary menu and the SUMMARISE command. Also, if an attempt is made to Save information into a file written by an older version of the program, a warning will be issued to guard against the possibility of over-writing stacked data sets in a file due to the additional space required by the new entries for each scenario saved.

GROUPTYPE can be used to define special lane group conditions, such as DualOptional lanes, FreeFlow lanes, and Stop controlled lanes. The default is Normal. It is not used by PREPASSR.

LANES can be used to define the number of lanes found in each lane group defined by a non-zero WIDTH entry. Its default value is deduced from the WIDTHS entry using the tens digit of the WIDTH entry. It is not used by PREPASSR.

STORAGE can be used to define the distance in feet available for the storage of vehicles for a given lane group. This is the space available before queued vehicles in this particular lane group will start to interfere with the performance of other lane groups. The default is 0. It is not used by PREPASSR.

TRUCKPERCENTS can be used to define the truck activity in each lane group as a percentage of total traffic. Its default value is 2%, consistent with the Highway Capacity Manual and SIGNAL2000. It is not used by PREPASSR.

RIGHTTURNONREDS can be used to indicate that RTOR is permitted on a given approach. Its default value is 0, indicating RTOR is not permitted, consistent with the Highway Capacity Manual and SIGNAL2000. It is not used by PREPASSR.

STARTUPLOST can be used to define an explicit amount of startup lost time for each individual movement of each intersection. Its default value is 2 seconds, consistent with the Highway Capacity Manual and SIGNAL2000. It is not used by PREPASSR.

ENDGAIN can be used to define an explicit amount of end gain time for each individual movement of each intersection. Its default value is 2 seconds, consistent with the Highway Capacity Manual and SIGNAL2000. It is not used by PREPASSR.

NETWORK has two new options added at the end of the entry, one to define the upstream-downstream assignment method to be used on links of the TRANSYT network, and the other to define the link curvature for CORSIM. Their defaults are Default and None, respectively. They are not used by PREPASSR.

SIMULATION has a new option which defines the default link assignment method to be used by PRETRANSYT if not specifically selected on a NETWORK entry, as described above. It is not used by PREPASSR.

>New Lost Time Model is More Consistent with Highway Capacity Manual.

The usage of the system-wide LOSTTIMES entry has been discontinued, now being replaced by the more detailed, movement-specific STARTUPLOST and ENDGAIN entries described above. The system-wide LOSTTIME entry was used by PREPASSR to code the system-wide lost time entry required by PASSER. Since LOSTTIMES entries found in prior data files will now be ignored, PREPASSR will always enter a standard default system-wide lost time value of 4 seconds, consistent with the same default in the Highway Capacity Manual and SIGNAL2000. The user should note, however, that the default lost time used previously for LOSTTIMES was 3 seconds, so a slight difference in lost time modeling will occur.

>Allowable Limits Increased for Coordinate Entries via NODELOCATION.

Coordinate values entered via the NODELOCATION entry can now have a range of plus or minus 2,147,483,647 instead of the prior limited range of -9999 to 32,768. This greatly increases the flexibility and ease with which coordinate values can be derived and used, although this information is not used by PREPASSR.

>New Features for Export-Auto Host Definition and Launching.

The Options-Setup dialog now allows the name of the Host executable file to be added at the end of the Host path, in the event that this executable name is different than used by default. This is possible when Exporting to releases of PASSER earlier than the most recent version supported by PREPASSR. The dialog also displays the 64-char limit for path\file names which must be observed. When the AUTO option of Export is executed, the program will now first look for the designated Host program (either the default or specified name) and issue a message if it is not found, cancelling the Export. Also, some systems may have experienced problems returning to PREPASSR after Export AUTO due to a random loss-of-focus problem which could occaissionally occur; this has been corrected.

>Other Export-Auto Enhancements.

Before Export AUTO is executed, any previous ARTDATA file (for LEART) which exists in the PASSER host folder will be deleted so that it is not confused with the current run of PASSER, particularly in the event of a problem with the current run. Also, since PREPASSR supports data folder names which exceed the limits of PASSER, these limits are checked before the Export AUTO and if PASSER will not be able to handle the folder name, C:\ will be used for the location of the PASSER data files instead of the PREPASSR data folder.

>TEAPAC2000 Version 5.02 Generic Interface Fine-tuning.

In the first release of the TEAPAC2000 Ver 5 Interface, users may have experienced difficulty using the Advanced Datafiles LOAD and SAVE functions from the Tabular View. These functions have been updated to work properly from the Tabular View.

Error messages generated from the Manual Mode, data files or control files will list the specific line of input which generated the error, with the offending item highlighted in red. If the information came from a file, the file number and line number of the error is also listed.

The File-New function has been updated to make sure that previous NETWORK entries are set back to default values, not just hidden. This assures that the old values do not unexpectedly appear later when an incomplete NETWORK entry is made.

Shortcut keys have been added to the File-RecentFiles and File-Save dialogs for more expediant keyboard manipulation.

Certain warning and error messages shouldn't be closed automatically by the new AutoClose option if these messages expect or require user response. The AutoClose option is now ignored for these cases.

The Help-Messages menu item has been changed to Help-RecentChanges to better reflect its purpose.

The Help-About menu item now shows the specific program name.

The default size of the Help window has been increased in size vertically to better display the contents of the complete, on-screen manual and context-sensitive help topics.

:PREPASSR Ver 1.60 25SEP01

Build 10

>Enhanced Dialog Buttons to Navigate Through Intersection Data.

New buttons have been added to each dialog which contains intersection data which makes it easy to move through the NODELIST of intersections when viewing that dialog's data. Pressing the '+' button in the dialog will change the intersection being viewed to the next one in the NODELIST, while pressing the '-' button will change to the previous intersection in the NODELIST.

>IMPORT Enhanced.

IMPORT has been enhanced so that only a single set of PASSER data is imported, rather than the two sets which have been imported in the past. The two sets resulted from the way that the results file from PASSER is structured. IMPORT now recognizes this format and halts the import when a single complete set of import data has been imported. No change in the imported data results from this change, merely a less confusing and less redundant IMPORT report.

>TEAPAC2000 User Interface Version 5 Implemented.

The WinTEAPAC2000 Version 5 User Interface has been implemented in PREPASSR to provide the latest standardized TEAPAC interface found in all TEAPAC programs. The following lists the many changes which this new interface provides:

>New Tabular View Option Provides Dense Data Entry Displays.

Two views for Visual Mode, normal and tabular.
More data inputs per dialog, less helps and cues.
Toggle view between Normal and Tabular with View menu or F3 key.
Tooltip help and status line help for each entry field.
Context-sensitive help button for access to complete help in .HLP.
Execute button for action functions.
Next & Prev buttons if input list takes more than one dialog (PgUp & PgDn).
Alt-X accel to move through input keywords (commands) with keyboard.
Create custom Tabular View input dialog with ASK command from Manual Mode.
IODEV param #1 changed to toggle View.
Options-Setup allows option to startup program in Tabular View.

>New Recent File Dialog in File Menu.

Review list of last nine files and paths used.
Can select/edit file names and re-open selected files.
Option to include list of recent files and paths in File menu.
List of recent files can be cleared from the dialog.

>New Features for Saving Files.

Files now contain name & version of program which wrote the file.
-- also include the date & time of the Save
-- easily viewable information at the beginning of the file
Message advising of successful save remains visible until closed by user.
-- option to close the message automatically for subsequent Saves
Warning if Save is attempted into a file that may over-write other info.
-- warning condition is if file was written by another program or unknown
-- certain earlier versions of the same prog may provide warning if relevant
-- option to cancel save or to permit save anyway

>New Feature for Opening Files.

If data from another prog or earlier ver of same program read from a file,
-- that file is protected from Saves that may over-write other information
In particular, for file from another program, Share is automatic.
-- makes File-Open same as File-OpenShared & LOAD * * * same as LOAD * * Share
-- eliminates the need to use the OpenShared or LOAD * * Share explicitly

>New Results Log Option.

Ability to create text file with results of primary functions of program.
Log Results item in Options menu.
Log On/Off toggles whether computed results are currently being logged.
Start New Log clears all prior logged results and toggles Log On.
Log file is always the program name with .log extension.
-- located in folder where program was installed

>Improvements Regarding Output Titling Information.

Any time a title line is read from a file, displayed in the title bar.
-- provides feedback when loading multiple stacked files or control file
Blank title entries are saved in such a way that they will be restored.
-- previously, blank entries were ignored, leaving the prior entry
The option to use %F in a title line entry is noted in the input dialog.

>TED Edit Window Available in Advanced Edit Option of File Menu.

Option to edit current open file (#1) contents directly.
-- particularly for control files
-- also option to open a different file into the editor
-- -- converts to TEAPAC format when Saved
-- -- CONVERT.exe no longer needed for small files
-- available only when licensed copy of TED is installed
Upon saving the edits, option to open the edited file into the program.
-- e.g., to Launch an edited control file

>Printer Setup Supported Directly in File Menu.

Option to Setup printer only, or Setup and Print.
-- ability to select printer and printer options while in the program
-- prior method only allowed printing to current selected printer and option
Toolbar button and Ctrl-P accelerator print immediately with current setup.
Same print options are provided in the File menu of the Output window.

>Improved Context-sensitive Help Features.

Tooltip popup help has been added for any dialog box input field or button.
-- display after delay when mouse cursor hovers over input field or button
Status line help also appears for the input field with the input cursor.
HELP in manual mode for a single command displays the relevant part of .HLP.
As before, Help button or F1 key to display the relevant part of .HLP.

>New Save and Linkage Features Provided When Exiting the Program.

Warning message for unsaved data has been reversed with option to Save.
-- message now consistent with most other Windows programs
-- -- (in the way the question is asked)
-- option to Save or not save, or to Cancel the exit
New ability to link to another program using the File-Control-Stop dialog.
-- name the next program to run, as well as file to use, if desired
-- can be used from a control file to link programs or control files
-- also link from Manual Mode
The Quit menu which duplicated the File-Exit menu has been removed.

>Command History in Manual Mode.

Remembers last 10 manual mode commands used.
Use up- and down-arrows to see history of commands.
Re-use previous command or adjust to create new command.

>WinTEAPAC2000 Ver 5 Menu Program Enhanced.

A data file can be named in the display for the next selected program.
A Browse button has been added to assist in naming the data file to be used.
-- provides standard extensions for typical files of supported programs
A data file from a TEAPAC2000 Version 5 program can be dragged to WinTEAPAC.
-- will launch the program that created the file and use the dragged file
-- can drag the file to the WinTEAPAC window or desktop icon
The .FOR extension used by TEAPAC is registered when WinTEAPAC runs.
-- allows double-clicking .FOR files in Explorer and START command in .BAT

>Other Changes:

A 'Getting Started' help button is now available in the main window.
The option to Save output to a text file now allows the user to name a file.
A more informative message is issued if a file to open is already in use.
Better message if attempt to Open a non-TEAPAC file.
TEAPAC programs can now be installed in a folder with spaces in path name.
A new option exists to automatically close subsequent warnings and errors.
-- stays in effect until control returned to user
-- for stacked files and control files
Files can now be dragged to a desktop icon to launch the program.
-- uses the dragged file
All keywords now display using title-case instead of all-caps.
All dialog boxes have been enhanced with a more modern look.
-- using depressed input fields
Protect the Options-Setup fields which should not be changed.
-- except by re-installing
Browse buttons have been added for the data and host path entries.
-- to simplify changes
The current data file path from Options-Setup is shown in the FILES dialog.
Reading data from a file during control file execution doesn't set flag.
-- so won't get prompted with message to save data from a control file
Better closure of main window if control file halts program.
-- same function improved if control file dragged to main window halts prog
Hourglass mouse cursor displays while printing.

:PREPASSR Ver 1.54 15JAN00

Build 14

>New Print Module for 32-bit Windows.

A new TEAPAC print module (TEAPACPR.exe) has been created for 32-bit Windows platforms (Windows 95, Windows 98, Windows NT and Windows 2000) which has greater compatibility with some 32-bit printer drivers which have been distributed by printer vendors recently. This module also has continued compatibility with older printer drivers. The new module is now distributed as the standard print module for all Win32 versions of TEAPAC programs. The original print module is still distributed as the standard print module for all Win16 versions, and is also distributed as an alternate print module for the Win32 versions.

Build 10

>Intersection Descriptions Displayed in TIMINGS Output.

Signal timing outputs produced by the TIMINGS command now display the intersection description in addition to the intersection number, if such a description has been provided.

>Changes to Standard TEAPAC2000 Interface, Ver 4.01.

All TEAPAC programs which have Windows versions use the new TEAPAC2000 Interface which was introduced in November, 1999. The following changes have been made to this interface to further enhance its effectiveness:

>Spaces Allowed in Folder Names for Data Files.

Folders which contain data files may now contain spaces in the folder name. Data files themselves are still limited to 11 characters including the extension and may not have embedded spaces (for continued compatibility with supported DOS products), but the restriction on path names (folders) has been removed.

>File Name Can Be Inserted in Title Lines.

The name of the current open file can be inserted anywhere in a title line (PROJECT, DESCRIPTION or NOTE entry) by placing %F at the desired location of the title line. The file name can be placed at a specific column location in a title line by using the +XX form of a title entry (see Help for any of the title commands).

>Bigger Output Window for Higher Resolution Displays.

Output windows containing program results which are displayed at resolutions of 1024x768 or higher now use a larger window so that more results can be displayed and less scrolling is required to observe all of the results.

>Additional Help and Shortcut Features Added.

Several new help features have been added. One of these is a new Help button on the toolbar for direct access to the on-line manual. Help notes in the status line at the bottom of the window for each of the menu items in the File menu have also been added. The File-Close menu item in the main window now uses a shortcut of 'C' instead of 'L' for consistency with other programs, and the File-Exit menu item in the Results window has been changed to File-CloseResults to avoid confusion with the File-Exit menu item of the main window. Lastly, the last used file name is retained in the File-Open and File-SaveAs dialogs, even when a previous dialog was cancelled.

>New Warning Messages.

A new warning message has been generated to warn users if unsaved data values are about to be reset to default values by the File-New menu item. A new message also warns if the installed folder has spaces in its name, which will cause problems in certain operations like printing.

>Potential Problem Running Under Windows NT Eliminated.

In the initial release of the TEAPAC 2000 interface (07NOV99), a technique for dynamic menu building was used which had a conflict with certain service packs and memory configurations of Windows NT. To avoid this potential problem on any given machine, the dynamic menu building has been removed and replaced with a method that will work on all configurations of Windows NT.

:PREPASSR Ver 1.53 07NOV99

>Additional Help Features Added.

Several new help features have been added which were inadvertently omitted from the initial TEAPAC2000 release. One of these is a new Help button on the toolbar for direct access to the on-line user guide. This guide is a complete, fully-indexed copy of the printed manual. Help notes in the status line at the bottom of the window for each of the menu items in the File and Edit menus have also been added.

>Potential Problem Running Under Windows NT Eliminated.

In the initial, full release of the TEAPAC 2000 interface (07NOV99), a technique for dynamic menu building was used which appears to have a possible conflict with certain service packs and memory configurations of Windows NT. To avoid this potential problem, the dynamic menu building has been removed and replaced with a method that will work on all configurations of Windows NT.

>WinPREPASSR Uses the New TEAPAC2000 Interface Version 4.00.

WinPREPASSR has been released with the new TEAPAC2000 Interface (Interface Version 4.00) which offers many new features to enhance the computing experience with TEAPAC programs. The following new features are among those provided by the TEAPAC2000 Interface:

-- Context-sensitive link to Help file for error messages.
-- Context-sensitive link to Help file for program outputs.
-- Modernized dialog box design consistent with Windows 95/98/NT.
-- New radio button and drop-down list input features.
-- Sizable main window for better screen display and integration with other running programs.
-- New Toolbar buttons for common functions.
-- File name and save status displayed in main window caption.
-- Help strings for menu options.
-- Dynamic title display during batch control file execution.
-- New accelerator keys (shortcuts) for common menu selections.
-- New File-Close menu option.
-- Sizable File-Open dialog.
-- Proportional scroll button for viewing output.

Other useful and unique features carried over from the previous Windows interface for TEAPAC include:

-- Visual Mode of input that shows graphically what inputs are needed.
-- Optional Manual Mode of input for blazing fast input by power users.
-- Context-sensitive link to Help file for all Visual Mode inputs.
-- Complete, fully-indexed manual on-line as Help file.
-- Ability to create and run batch/script/macro-type control files.
-- Ability to drag a data or control file from Explorer to the running TEAPAC program.
-- Free program updates via Internet downloads.
-- Complete data file compatibility between old, new, DOS and Windows versions.
-- Complete Y2K compliance.

Updates for the new TEAPAC2000 Interface can be downloaded from the www.StrongConcepts.com internet web page at no charge for users who hold an up-to-date Windows license for PREPASSR. These downloads are available to the general public, but will be rendered as demos for those who do not qualify for the free update.

:PREPASSR Ver 1.52 27AUG98

>TEAPAC Interface Ver 3.03 Changes Made.

A unique new licensing technique has been implemented in the Ver 3.03 Interface which will allow users to download free updates of TEAPAC programs from the Internet, without the need for pre-arranged passwords or download codes. When the demos found at the Strong Concepts homepage are run on the users system, the licensed Usage Level will be automatically enabled. The licensing also allows either Win16 or Win32 operation from the same license, both of which will be available along with the DOS-based version of each program on CD-ROM distribution.

The SaveAs function will now report that a selected file name already exists, asking if it should be overwritten. Also, the brief window giving feedback about the successful Save or SaveAs function has been lengthened from 3 to 5 seconds. The default location of user data files has been changed from '.\' to the installed TEAPAC folder location (usually C:\TEAPAC) for more consistency with normal Windows operations.

A new option for DOS TEAPAC programs in line five of the .CFG file allows the entry of 'HPLJx' to indicate that the printer attached to 'LPTx' is a Hewlett Packard LaserJet compatible printer. This complements the 'LPTx' option added in the Ver 3.01 interface so that required HPLJ printer codes are sent to the printer for each page, and are no longer required as a separate effort by the user. This is most significant in shared and networked printer environments. Note that when LPTx is used, the F6 key functions only when the printer is attached to LPT1 (or PRN).

When the '&' character is used in the Manual Mode of a Windows program, the next prompt received has been modified to include the '&' character to indicate that the entry to be made is a continuation of the previous entry, not a new command entry. This now behaves similarly to the DOS Manual Mode, in this regard.

>Problem Fixed for Long Time-space Diagrams from Windows Versions.

Time-space diagrams (from the PLOT command) which were longer than a single page may have caused printer overflow problems for certain printers when running any of the Windows versions of the program. The line-counting strategy used has been changed to prevent this overflow. The result is that time-space diagrams which are longer than a single page will have the necessary page breaks, but each successive page will not carry the full headings so the long time-space diagram may be viewed with the least disruption from the multiple paging.

:PREPASSR Ver 1.51 05MAR98

>TEAPAC Interface Ver 3.02 Changes Made.

Various support files which are used by the program are now closed after their use so that other TEAPAC applications which are running concurrently on the same or other networked computers have less opportunity to conflict with the use of these files.

In Win32 versions, the vertical scroll button of the Output window can now be clicked and dragged to scroll through the output from top to bottom. Previously, this button's position could only be clicked to change the view of the output.

In Win32 versions, the File-Open and File-SaveAs dialog boxes now display the last file used in the FileName field, as well as the dialog's caption, providing an easier way to retrieve and save files with variations of previous file names.

:PREPASSR Ver 1.50 17DEC97

>First Release of Windows Version of PREPASSR.

This version of PREPASSR marks the first release of a Windows version of PREPASSR, featuring the new Visual Mode of operation. PREPASSR for Windows is available in a 16-bit version which runs on Windows 3.x and Windows 95, as well as a 32-bit version which runs on Windows 95 and Windows NT.

>Add Intersections to NODELIST Simply by Using a New INTERSECTION Number.

Intersections may now be added to the end of the NODELIST simply by using an INTERSECTION number which is not currently in the NODELIST. When this happens, the user is prompted as to whether the new number should be added or re-entered. This means the user can avoid the strict use of the NODELIST command entry, if desired, simply by creating the NODELIST every time a new INTERSECTION number is referenced. The most useful place this might occur is when multiple intersection files are being LOADed from files created by SIGNAL94.

>New Actions and Defaults for EXPORT AUTO.

The VIEW option is now the default action for EXPORT AUTO, so that the normal process will be to VIEW the PASSER output file which is generated. The previous default, IMPORT, is still a valid option for DOS versions, but under Windows the IMPORT command must now be used to import PASSER results after the PASSER run is completed (due to the multi-tasking operation of newer Windows platforms). A new option NONE has also been created for EXPORT AUTO which performs no additional actions after the EXPORT AUTO is executed.

>Improved File Management by EXPORT.

When EXPORT AUTO is used, previous PASSER result files (TMPPSR.POF, etc.) which may exist from a previous PASSER run are first deleted before the PASSER run is made. This prevents any possible confusion as to what results were generated by the current run, since the same output file name will be used.

In addition, the EXPORT file is closed after the EXPORT is completed so that in a multi-tasking Windows system this file may be opened by any other program (such as PASSER itself, or an editor) while PREPASSR is still running.

>New Option Available to Disable PASSER's Actuated Model.

The use of the PASSER actuated model which is used to simulate actuated systems can be somewhat confusing, and may lead to erroneous results and misinterpretations of the results if not clearly understood by the user. On the other hand, the ACTUATIONS input makes it quite simple to implement this model without knowledge of the consequences. In light of this dilemma, a new option has been added to the SIMULATION entry to disable the PASSER actuated model, regardless of the ACTUATIONS inputs, and disabling the PASSER actuated model is the default and recommended condition.

>Additional Method for Defining Analysis Period.

An option that was implemented for PRENETSIM has now been implemented for PREPASSR as well. This allows the simulation period to be defined as an even number of signal cycles by entering the number of cycles as a negative number for the SIMULATION period.

>Workaround for PASSER Bug in LEART.

In PASSER, the IOSPEC.DAT file is supposed to point to the data files which are used for a given run of PASSER. However, in the case of LEART and its associated ARDATA file, it appears that LEART ignores the IOSPEC file and always utilizes the ARTDATA file in the main PASSER directory, if it exists. In order to minimize the potential for using the wrong ARTDATA file, the IOSPEC.DAT file is now created such that the ARTDATA file is placed in the main PASSER directory.

>TEAPAC Interface Ver 3.01 Changes Made.

Minor changes which are now incorporated into Ver 3.01 of the standard TEAPAC Interface have been implemented in PREPASSR. These include the following changes and enhancements:

In Windows versions of PREPASSR, data files can be dragged from other applications like Windows Explorer or File Manager and dropped on the main window of a running copy of WinPREPASSR. This is equivalent to using the File-Open dialog of the program for the dragged file.

The maximum size of file names (including the path defined in the .CFG file) has been increased to 64 characters. Under the Win32 version of WinPREPASSR the defined paths may now also have embedded blanks, although this is not recommended. Actual file names should still be 11 characters or less (including Win32 versions), and any embedded blanks for a SaveAs name will be replaced by the underscore character, since embedded blanks are still not permitted in file names. Note that if SAVEd files are renamed to include more than 11 characters or embedded blanks, the shortened (8.3) file name displayed by the DIR command of the Command Prompt may still be used, even in the Win32 version of the program.

In the DOS version of PREPASSR, a new entry has been added to the end of the PREPASSR.CFG file which can be used to define the destination of printed output. The default has been changed from the "PRN" value previously used to "LPT1". This can be changed to any valid DOS printer device name. A file name may also be used for this entry to direct all "printed" output to an ASCII file (in lieu of the IODEVICES option which requires use of the Manual Mode).

New versions of the TEAPAC.BAT and WinTEAPAC shell programs (Ver 3.01) have also been produced, primarily to handle the new CORSIM program. CORSIM is now the default option of each shell. WinTEAPAC also allows running the DOS version (NETSIM) by first selecting a DOS check box. The DOS check box can also be used to over-ride the presence of a Windows version of a TEAPAC program such as SIGNAL94, PREPASSR, PRETRANSYT or PRENETSIM by forcing the running of the DOS version instead. The normal mode is now to search for and run the Windows version of any TEAPAC program before a DOS version is attempted. The newest version of WinTEAPAC also fixes a problem sometimes encountered on WinNT (and some Win95 systems) when trying to run DOS programs from the WinTEAPAC shell. Improved error message have been created as well, and long path names are also supported, although not encouraged, in the WTEAPAC.CFG file.

:PREPASSR Ver 1.40 22NOV94

>New Commands for More Analysis Options - Caution Re. Increased Save Length.

Several new commands have been added, resulting in a net increase of many new lines of data which are SAVEd in a file. This has an important impact on re-saving data into files where multiple scenarios have already been SAVEd, since each SAVE now takes more lines than previously. Such situations require that the original information be LOADed from the original file, then updated, then SAVEd into a different file, stacking the scenarios in the new file as before, but with more lines per scenario. If you have any questions about this process, call Strong Concepts for assistance.

In addition to saving the new commands identified above, a full-sized NODELIST and SUBSYSTEM is always saved along with complete PHASEMOVS so that if these options are used before a re-SAVE in the future, the problem described above will not occur. Along a similar line, if SAVE is issued without a NODELIST, the [SYSTEM] commands are now saved in the file, as opposed to not being saved in the past.

>New ROUTE Command Offers Shortcut Option.

A new command, ROUTE, has been implemented which can be used to identify up to eight "artery" routes. The first entry is the route number, 1-8, followed by a list of up to 25 nodes which make up the route. ROUTE is primarily to define routes for TRANSYT from PRETRANSYT for route summaries and PROS optimization, but several applications in PREPASSR are available, as described below.

Route numbers can be referenced by use of negative numbers on the SUBSYSTEM, PLOT and TIMINGS commands to quickly identify routes for analysis. For example, if ROUTE 1 is defined by an appropriate ROUTE command, a subsystem analysis for only this route can be created through the use of the SUBSYSTEM -1 command (this is only valid in Usage Level 2 versions of PREPASSR). Negative route numbers can also be used on the PLOT and TIMINGS commands to list only the nodes in the defined route. This option of the PLOT and TIMINGS commands can be used in Usage Level 1 versions of PREPASSR.

Definition of routes with the ROUTE command should follow the specific rules presented in the TRANSYT manual regarding routes in the event they are used by PRETRANSYT. For example, a route may be 1-way or 2-way, but may not be partially 1-way and partially 2-way. Many of these checks are performed by PRETRANSYT to validate the route definition, but not all possibilities are checked. The user must retain final responsibility for the proper definitions of routes in PRETRANSYT. One basic check made by PRETRANSYT is that all nodes of the route exist in the current NODELIST and/or SUBSYSTEM, and that all of the nodes on the route are connected in the proper order.

>New PEAKHOURFACTORS Command Allows Input Consistent with HCM & SIGNAL85.

A new command, PEAKHOURFACTORS, has been implemented for each intersection which can be used to input peak hour factors for each movement of the intersection. The entered value which can be in the range of 0.50 to 1.00 is used to convert entered VOLUMES into the volumes to be used by the PASSER analysis. These converted volumes are technically interpreted as the flow rate in vehicles per hour during the peak fifteen minute period. If the peak fifteen minute flow rate is entered on the VOLUMES command, or if the entered VOLUMES are meant to represent the average hour, PEAKHOURFACTORS of 1.0 should be used. The default PEAKHOURFACTORS values are 0.9, consistent with SIGNAL85/94 and the Highway Capacity Manual.

>New ACTUATIONS Command Can Be Used to Define Actuated Movements.

A new command, ACTUATIONS, has been implemented for each intersection which can be used to input the actuated status of each movement of the intersection. The entered value can be either NO or YES, and is used to set the actuated flag within PASSER. The default value of ACTUATIONS is NO.

>New OVERLAPS Command Can Be Used to Define Right Turn Phasing.

A new command, OVERLAPS, has been implemented for each intersection which can be used to determine if any of the right turns of the intersection are allowed to overlap into adjacent left turn phases. The entered value can be either NO or YES, and defaults to YES. A NO entry prevents a right turn from overlapping into adjacent phases.

>New MASTERNODE Command Allows Definition of a Master Intersection.

A new command, MASTERNODE, has been implemented which can be used to identify which node of the NODELIST is the "master" intersection. When this is done, PASSER holds the offset of the master intersection fixed, while other offsets can be varied around its value. The default value is 0, indicating that no master node is identified. If the designated master node is not in the SUBSYSTEM and/or NODELIST being used, it is ignored.

>New NODELOCATION Command Added for PRENETSIM Compatibility.

For compatibility with the need for intersection coordinates in PRENETSIM, the standard TEAPAC NODELOCATION inputs have been added to PREPASSR. These input values are not used anywhere by PREPASSR, but allow improved data file interchangeability between PRETRANSYT, PREPASSR and PRENETSIM.

>Single Intersection Analysis with PASSER Permitted.

Error detection logic in PREPASSR has been improved to allow a single intersection to be exported to PASSER. Previous logic perceived this condition to be an error because no connections to other intersections were found. This new feature provides the opportunity to use PASSER for single-intersection analysis not available with other single intersection models.

>New Default Values for Simulation Period & Ideal Satflow Rate.

The default value of the simulation period on the SIMULATION input has been changed from 60 minutes to 15 minutes. This is consistent with the prevailing analysis concepts in the Highway Capacity Manual which dictates an analysis period of 15 minutes, as well as the new PEAKHOURFACTORS inputs which are now allowed in PREPASSR.

The ideal satflow rate coded into PASSER's embedded data has also been updated from 1800 to 1900 for compatibility with the pending 1994 update to the Highway Capacity Manual.

>Multiple Loads from SIGNAL85 Files Allowed with Share Option.

new feature of the SHARE option of LOAD now allows consecutive sets of SIGNAL85/94 intersection data to be LOADed from one file with a single command. For example, if 20 intersections of SIGNAL85/94 data are SAVEd one after the other in a single file, the command LOAD 1 1 SHARE 20 would read all of these data sets into PREPASSR. The only entry required prior to the LOAD would be a NODELIST command to identify the node numbers to be read from the SIGNAL85/94 file. Previously, the RESET command in each of the SIGNAL85/94 data sets was executed if the SHARE number was greater than one, thereby erasing the NODELIST and any previous intersection input. This new option allows the simple entry of many sets of stacked data sets in a file to be quickly LOADed without the need for a control file or the repetitive entry of many individual LOAD command.

>New Shortcut Way to Move Between Intersection Input Screens.

A new feature added with the V2 L2.3 TEAPAC Interface described below is the ability to move between intersection input screens with a single keystroke combination: Ctrl-Page-Up and Ctrl-Page-Down. When any data input screen is displayed, the "current" intersection can be incremented or decremented up and down the NODELIST by pressing the Page-Down or Page-Up keys while holding the Control key down. Although the INTERSECTION command can still be used to select any intersection in the nodelist, this new shortcut is usually faster, unless the next intersection desired is a long way up or down the nodelist. Caution should be used to not press Ctrl-Page-Up/Down immediately after changing a data value on a screen display because that data value will not be entered. First use TAB or ENTER to enter the value, then use Ctrl-Page-Up/Down.

>New Option on Timings Allows Selection of Nodes to List.

A new option on the TIMINGS command allows a list of nodes to be entered (up to 25 nodes) for which timings are to be listed. As before, if the list is omitted, the default list is the entire SUBSYSTEM. If the SUBSYSTEM command is not used, the default is the complete NODELIST. If a negative number is entered as the first (and only) entry, this is interpreted as the route number of a previously entered ROUTE for which TIMINGS are to be listed.

>Name of Automatic Export Data Files Changed from TEMPPSR to TMPPSR.

The name of the temporary data files used by the AUTO option of the EXPORT command have been changed from TEMPPSR.* to TMPPSR.*. This is an incidental change dictated by the graphics file naming conventions required by NETSIM, but is important to users who will use these temporary files after the automatic EXPORT. A specific case in point is when these output files are to be printed with PASSER or renamed so they are retained and not over-written by subsequent automatic EXPORTS.

>Minor Adjustments Made to SUMMARISE Report.

Changes to the SUMMARISE report have been made to incorporate the new command inputs, as well as other minor adjustments.

>Bug Fixed for Certain Entries in Line Three of PREPASSR.CFG File.

In earlier versions of PREPASSR, under certain conditions, edits made to line three of the PREPASSR.CFG file may not perform properly. This line defines the subdirectory where user data files are to be stored. Such symptoms have only been observed during the IMPORT phase of an automatic EXPORT. This bug has been fixed.

>New PASSER File Name Conventions and Support Programs Used.

All default file naming by PREPASSR now follows the latest conventions of PASSER. Specifically, the default file extension for PASSER input files created by EXPORT is now PIN and the default file extension for PASSER output files created by EXPORT and used by IMPORT is now POF.

>New Export File Options and File Handling.

AUTO is now the default option for both EXPORT and IMPORT. This new default generates an automatic run of PASSER and IMPORTs results from the file created by the automatic export, respectively.

If the file being exported already exists and the STACK option is not used, the existing file is now deleted before the export so that none of its preceding contents remain at the end of the new file. In addition, the file which is exported is closed after the export. This allows the exported file to be used by another program (e.g., PASSER) while PREPASSR is still resident in memory, such as in multi-tasking operating systems like Windows.

>Large Systems Can Now Be SAVEd & EXPORTed from the Menu Mode.

Previously, systems with more than 12 nodes (Usage Level 2 versions of PREPASSR) needed to be SAVEd from the Manual Mode in order for the NODELIST and/or SUBSYSTEM to be saved with more than 12 intersections. The Manual Mode was also needed for the AUTO option of EXPORT since a SAVE is performed in the background for this case. This limitation has now been removed, allowing SAVE and EXPORT to be performed from either the Menu Mode or the Manual Mode, as desired by the user. The complete NODELIST and/or SUBSYSTEM command of greater than 12 intersections must still be entered from the Manual Mode only, since only a single input line is available to enter these values from the Menu Mode.

>New IMPORT Error Messages Help Understand Import Problems.

Several possible and typical errors which may be encountered when importing data from PASSER output files are now identified with a new PREPASSR error message to identify these conditions. These are listed below.

0 - file read error, usually due to a bad diskette, no import.
2 - pin settings not found in PASSER output file, no import.
3 - node number in import file is not in the node list, import aborted.

>Improved Escape from Multiple Errors and Output Reports.

Checking for the ESCAPE key during multiple error occurrences and certain multi-page reports has been substantially improved, resulting in quicker response to the ESCAPE key when used to abort these circumstances. This is particularly helpful on faster computer systems which process so quickly that it has been difficult for the user to press ESCAPE before the computer has already checked for it.

>Embedded Speed Lines Re-enabled for Time-space PLOT.

The earlier option to display speed lines within the time-space diagram of the PLOT command has been re-enabled. This option was inadvertently disabled in an earlier version when the input limit for the scale entry was set to a range of 0 to 10,000. The input range is now -9999 to 10,000 with the negative inputs indicating the desire to display the speed lines within the body of the time-space diagram, not in the margin. This option may help the user identify traffic flow in the diagram when it is displayed directly on-screen. In either case, the user must translate the slope of the displayed speed lines into the diagram so they represent meaningful traffic flow.

>Phasing Diagram of TIMINGS Modified Slightly.

The phasing diagram of the TIMINGS command has been modified slightly to replicate the format of SIGNAL85/94. This is primarily in the form of a more clear North arrow.

>Improved Handling of Phasemovs to Avoid Errors.

In order to avoid the possibility that a short PHASEMOVS definition at one intersection is improperly affected by a longer PHASEMOVS definition at an earlier intersection, all six possible phases are always displayed and SAVEd for every intersection. In addition, if a zero is entered in a list of movements within PHASEMOVS, the remainder of that phase's movements are zeroed. Furthermore, all phases which follow a phase without any movements will also be zeroed. These modifications limit the potential for input errors and simplify the PHASEMOVS editing process.

>NETWORK Movements Not Set if No Source Node is Provided.

PREPASSR has always set the default movement numbers on NETWORK entries any time the cursor is placed on a NETWORK entry. This has confused some users when the default movement numbers pop up on a NETWORK entry that has no source node. In this case, the movement numbers would be ignored, but for clarity the movement numbers are now always left at zero unless a non-zero source node is provided.

>EXPORT AUTO Now Works from the Root Directory.

The design of the AUTO option of EXPORT was previously such that it only worked from a subdirectory other than the root directory (e.g., C:\). It was intended that the user would be logged to a data subdirectory when the option was used. This artificial limitation has been removed, now allowing EXPORT AUTO to be executed when the user is logged to the root directory, as well as any other subdirectory. Another change made to EXPORT AUTO is the deletion of the IOSPEC.DAT file which is created during the process, helping to make sure this file is not inadvertently used by another independent run of PASSER.

>Lost Time Now Entered with a Single Value, Consistent with SIGNAL85/94.

The LOSTTIME entry is now made with a single value instead of the Start Lag and End Lag which was previously used. This is now consistent with the way lost time is handled and SAVEd with SIGNAL85/94, making the sharing of SIGNAL85/94 data files more consistent. If two LOSTTIME entries are input, as would be the case when LOADing an old PREPASSR data file, the two entered values are added together and placed in the single input position for the new LOSTTIME entry. This keeps PREPASSR upwards compatible with old data files. The allowed input range has also been limited to values from 0.0 to 30.0.

>PLOT Command No Longer Requires the Input of the Starting Main Direction.

For the PLOT command, the main-street direction input for the first link of the time-space diagram is no longer a required input. The main street direction is determined automatically by PLOT. If an entry of this input is made, however, say from the Manual Mode or from an old control file, it will be accepted without error and then ignored. This keeps PREPASSR upwards compatible with old data and control files (as well as old habits). The same logic used to determine the main street direction for PLOT is also used in preparing the new card type 61 which requires the input of a route orientation.

>NODELIST Check Improved, Especially for One-way Streets.

Any time an active command is executed, PREPASSR inspects the SUBSYSTEM/ NODELIST entry to make as sure as possible that no obvious omissions have been made in the network definition. This check has been slightly improved to better accommodate conditions which might exist at the end-point nodes of one-way streets.

>EXPORT Review Option Changed to VIEW.

The REVIEW option of the EXPORT AUTO command has been changed to the keyword VIEW to better indicate the intended purpose of the option: to view the output created by PASSER.

>Generic Changes for Newest TEAPAC Interfaces - V2 L2.3 And V2 L2.4.

The generic changes involved in the latest TEAPAC Interfaces have been fully implemented in PREPASSR, as described below:

V2 L2.4 17JUN94

Better ESCape Processing Provided.

An improved method for detecting and trapping ESCape depressions has been implemented to provide quicker response to a user's desire to escape from a current activity in the program. This problem has become more of an issue in recent years as computer processing speeds have increased. More frequently the user finds himself pressing ESCape after the computer has checked for it because the computer processes the intervening activities so quickly. This has led to the need to press ESCape repeatedly to abort, and sometimes never actually executing the abort process. The new method used nearly eliminates this problem completely allowing the program to respond to the ESCape key instantly almost any time it is pressed.

Better Error Message Procedures Used.

Faster and more screen-compatible error display procedures are now used to minimize the occurrence of spurious error display problems which sometimes locked up the screen or displayed gibberish. Several minor clarifications in the text of some of the standard error messages have also been made.

Better Diagnostic Response if HELP File Not Found at Program Start.

An improved error message is now displayed if the program's .HLP file cannot be located when the program is first started.

Dynamic Pointer Key Operation Enhanced.

The dynamic pointer increment/decrement function using the Ctrl-Page-Down/Up key combination has been enhanced from its initial implementation in V2 L2.3. Now the command on which the cursor resides is not executed when these keys are pressed and the cursor is not moved to the next line of the screen display.

Manual Mode Message from Opening Screen Doesn't Over-write Loading Message.

The Manual Mode message given at the opening screen when the Manual Mode is entered has been shortened so that it does not over-write the "Loading Command File" message which also appears on the same line. This comes into play when a command file is loaded directly from the DOS prompt, particularly during an EXPORT AUTO operation. A similar message has also been added when the Manual Mode is entered directly from a full-screen display with the F4 key.

Prevent Saving Problem with PROJECT Command in Certain Manual Mode Cases.

Earlier versions of the TEAPAC Interface may have experienced a spurious occurrence of a problem SAVing the PROJECT command. This would only occur if the Manual Mode is entered directly from the opening screen using the ESCape key and then a SAVE is performed before any other full-screen operations. In this rare instance, the PROJECT information is SAVEd at the first line of the SAVE in a manner that cannot be LOADed without an error. This has been corrected.

V2 L2.3 07NOV93

Control-key Option Increments/Decrements Pointer Commands Like INTERSECTION.

Ctrl-Page-Down and -Up can be used to increment and decrement a pointer command (such as INTERSECTION) in programs that use pointer commands; this is most useful for programs like PREPASSR, PRETRANSYT and PRENETSIM to move between INTERSECTIONS, and SITE to move between either INTERSECTIONS or PATHDISTRIBUTION types.

Multiple LOADs Allowed with SHARE Option without RESET Execution.

RESET is not executed when multiple SHAREd LOADS are executed; this is most useful for programs like SITE, PREPASSR, PRETRANSYT and PRENETSIM when they LOAD a complete set of SIGNAL85 intersection data from a single file with a single LOAD command, e.g. LOAD 1 1 SHARE 20.

Version/Level Number of Program Listed in All Printed Output.

The program's Version/Level number is now included as a part of all printed report titles to make it clear what version of the program generated the results.

Improvements to CALCULATE Command.

A bug is fixed in assigning CALCULATE results to variables in a full-screen display; CALCULATE results are displayed in a bigger format which accommodates all possible integer results; and better overflow error checking is performed.

New Editing Keys and On-line Help Update.

Using Ctrl-END has the same effect as using the END key; on-line help screens have been updated with this and other changes, such as Ctrl-ENTER.

Improved Error Checking and Processing.

An invalid command in the SAVE list now generates a more reasonable response by terminating all file access before the SAVE is aborted.

An invalid command in the ASK list now aborts the ASK function, rather than proceeding without the invalid entry.

Error messages listed as WARNINGS in the documentation are now labeled as WARNINGS in the screen displays.

Improved Drive, Subdirectory and DOS Enviroment Support.

Disk drives A: through Z: are now supported, rather than A: through P:.

Dynamic program linkages, such as to and from HCS, can now be performed from the root directory in addition to any subdirectory.

A bigger DOS environment can be scanned when searching for the system PATH, now 1024 bytes rather than 512.

Helpful Prompt when Entering Manual Mode Directly from Opening Screen.

Pressing ESC at the opening screen to enter the Manual Mode generates the "Use F4 for Menu Mode" message, in the event the Manual Mode was not intended.

Demo Time-out Period Decreased for Faster Demos.

The time-out period between demo screens is reduced from 10 sec. to 7 sec.

:PREPASSR V1 L3.0 01MAY92

>PASSER2-90 Explicitly Supported in Addition to PASSER2-87.

The latest PASSER2-90 version of PASSER is now explicitly supported, and is the default version for the EXPORT process, even though the data files of both latest versions of PASSER2 (87 and 90) are nominally compatible.

>New Offset-only Optimization and Simulation Options Implemented.

It is now possible using PREPASSR to constrain PASSER so that it will only change the offsets during its optimization process, leaving the splits which were entered into PREPASSR unchanged. This is done with the new OFFSETS option of the OPTIMIZE command. This option is a good way to prevent PASSER from creating greentimes which are too short and create too much delay for minor movements which are not part of the arterial flow (this is a common problem observed with PASSER's optimization process). Further, if the splits in PREPASSR came from SIGNAL85's optimization process, thus reflecting an optimization of the critical movement level of service, the results from PASSER will still guarantee this HCM level of service performance. To accomplish this, the sum of the greens and yellows for each movement are passed to PASSER as the minimums for the optimization. Since PASSER will only accept these minimums in even seconds and the sum of the minimums must not exceed the cycle length, the greens and yellows are truncated, not rounded, when exported to PASSER. The same process is done for the new simulation option when the NONE option of OPTIMIZE is used.

>PHASER.DAT File Included in Export with Consistent Offsets.

The creation of the PHASER.DAT file is now included during the EXPORT process and the offsets which are exported to PASSER are consistent with this PHASER.DAT file. The PHASER.DAT file includes the required two sets of offset pointer information, both indicating that the offsets provided are to the beginning of the first occurring arterial phase. These are the offsets which are then exported to PASSER for simulation and subsequently returned by PASSER after an optimization. When the PASSER results are imported back into PREPASSR (either manually or automatically -- see new IMPORT option below), the TIMINGS command can be used to show the offset to any phase or clearance interval, including a phasing diagram and a north arrow which minimizes confusion in interpreting the results.

>New IMPORT Command Brings PASSER Results Directly into PREPASSR.

PASSER results can now be imported directly into PREPASSR using the new IMPORT command. When PASSER's results are saved in an output file, this output file is read by IMPORT and the CYCLE length and OFFSETS are set directly into the PREPASSR program for each intersection as if manually entered. If the OPTIMIZE command is set to SPLITS+OFFSETS or CYCLES when the IMPORT is performed, each intersection's GREENTIMES and YELLOWTIMES are entered as well. The first parameter of IMPORT is the name of the PASSER output file to import from (the default is PSR.OUT) and the second parameter determines whether the imported values should be displayed in a report format (the default is NO). If the file name is entered as AUTO, then the automatic file name (TEMPPSR.OUT) used by the automatic EXPORT option is used (see following section). AUTO may not be abbreviated, nor may any file name used start with the four letters A-U-T-O.

>New EXPORT Option Allows Automatic Linkage to and from PASSER.

A direct linkage to and from PASSER can now be created which handles the export file naming, running of PASSER, optional review of PASSER's results, re-loading of PREPASSR, and optional import of PASSER's results into PREPASSR. This option is selected by entering AUTO as the EXPORT file name. The second parameter to display the exported data can still be set to NO or YES. When AUTO is selected, a third parameter can be entered to define whether the PASSER results should be automatically IMPORTed back into PREPASSR (the keyword is IMPORT), whether the PASSER output file should be reviewed on-screen (the keyword is REVIEW), or both functions should be performed (the keyword is BOTH). The default value of the third parameter is IMPORT, and the third parameter is ignored if AUTO is not selected. AUTO may not be abbreviated, nor may any file name used start with the four letters A-U-T-O.

The default file to export to has been set to PSR.IN and can now be input with 16 characters. When the AUTO option is selected, the export file name used is TEMPPSR.IN and the PASSER results are stored in the file TEMPPSR.OUT. If multiple exports are to be stacked in a single data file for a batch run of PASSER, the file name STACK must be used and the file used by the previous EXPORT will be used by placing the new export after the previous export. STACK may not be abbreviated, nor may any file name used start with the five letters S-T-A-C-K.

In order for the AUTO option of EXPORT to function properly, the PREPASSR program must be initiated using the TEAPAC Menu System and the PREPASSR.CFG file must be configured to properly represent the subdirectories where the system's batch, PREPASSR, data and PASSER files are stored. The TEAPAC.BAT file must be similarly configured for the system's batch file location. A complete installation guide is provided in the Appendix G update.

>New SUBSYSTEM Command Available in Usage Level 2.

The SUBSYSTEM command has been implemented, allowing a subset of the complete NODELIST to be exported to PASSER in Level 2 versions of PREPASSR. This means that the entire network (up to 100 signals) may be LOADed into PREPASSR, then only the pertinent signals are exported to PASSER. This allows for extremely efficient testing of various potential subsystem boundaries.

Like the NODELIST command, the entry of a 0 node in the SUBSYSTEM list will terminate the SUBSYSTEM list of nodes and zero out any subsequent nodes in the list. Like the LINKLIST command, the SUBSYSTEM command is not SAVEd into a data file unless it has been defined. If this is the case, the SAVE will possibly take up more lines than a previous SAVE, so caution must be used if multiple scenarios are SAVEd into a single file.

>PASSER Cycle Range Optimization Implemented.

The PASSER option to optimize the cycle length has now been implemented as an automatic function of PREPASSR. It uses the same logic as the SPLIT+OFFSET optimization of PREPASSR, since PASSER must optimize splits in order to vary the cycle length, with the additional use of the new cycle range inputs on the CYCLES command. To implement this option, the Minimum Cycle, Maximum Cycle and Cycle Increment must be input on the CYCLES command and the new CYCLE+SPL+OFF option of the OPTIMIZE command must be used. In conjunction with this enhancement, the CYCLES command has been added to the [EXPORT] group name.

Although this new option of PREPASSR makes the cycle optimization with PASSER more convenient, it is still recommended that this PASSER option not be used in lieu of a more robust optimization of splits with SIGNAL85 and the use of PASSER only for offset optimization.

>New Data Displayed in TIMINGS Report.

The TIMINGS report has been enhanced with the addition of two types of phase time calculations. First, phase times (the sum of the green and yellow intervals) for each phase are displayed in both seconds and percent, both with one decimal place of accuracy. These values are also displayed rounded to the nearest second and percent, for implementation on systems which require such rounding. If rounding error causes these rounded values not to add up to the cycle length or 100 percent, the cumulated error is placed in the phase with the most allocated time. The characters used to display arrow head and vertical lines have also been improved, while still maintaining compatibility with any ASCII printer, and the report has been compressed slightly so that six-phase intersections will fit on any 80-character screen or printer.

>Check Made to Make Sure Input Network is Connected Throughout.

A check is now made before an EXPORT or PLOT to make sure that each of the intersections in the NODELIST and/or SUBSYSTEM are reasonably connected. This does not guarantee that the system is fully or properly connected, but will make sure each intersection in sequence is connected in both directions to the following intersection.

>System Node Number Included in EXPORT Street Name.

Since PASSER only accepts intersection numbers from 1 to 20, these numbers can be easily confused with system network numbers which are normally any arbitrary numbering scheme. System node numbers are used by the INTERSECTION command to reference each intersection in the network. These node numbers are now included in the street name which is exported to PASSER so that the PASSER results clearly indicate which intersection is which. This also aids in the problem of the limited number of characters which are allowed by PASSER for the street name since the node number is now always listed first. This node number is also used by the new IMPORT process to place the imported timings with the proper intersection.

>Improvements in EXPORT Minimize Problems when Running PASSER.

Several minor adjustments to the EXPORT process have been implemented which help minimize problems when PASSER is running using the exported data.

When a split+offset optimization is performed, the minimums for non-overlapping phases which are given to PASSER are checked to be sure they are the same, since this is required by PASSER. If they are not the same, the largest minimum for each phase is used. These apply, for example, to SEQUENCE codes 1, 4 and 7.

If no left turn lane exists, left turn volumes are not shown separately, but included in the through volumes. The PASSER phasing used for unopposed single phase operation when a left turn lane doesn't exist has also been changed.

>YELLOWTIMES Inputs Override LOSTTIMES in PASSER Minimum Inputs.

If YELLOWTIMES are input when a SPLIT+OFFSET or CYCLE optimization is requested, these values will be added to the green MINIMUMS to generate PASSER's input minimum values. If no YELLOWTIMES are provided, the sum of the two LOSTTIMES values will be used instead.

>Improved Input Checking.

Tighter input range checks have been implemented, with particular attention to only allowing the input of values which can be properly displayed in the Menu Mode, even if entered in the Manual Mode. This prevents bogus displays from appearing in the Menu Mode under these conditions. Active commands are also prevented from continuation if an error has been detected, in the event that it is not corrected properly.

>GREENTIMES Not Required as Input for SPLIT or CYCLE Optimization.

When EXPORTing to PASSER for a split or cycle optimization, the input of GREENTIMES is no longer required, since they will be ignored by PASSER. YELLOWTIMES may also be omitted, in which case the time for each clearance interval in PASSER will be set to the sum of the LOSTTIMES values. On a related note, if a zero time for an overlap phase is used, this is permitted by PREPASSR, although 1 second is used for PASSER since PASSER will not allow a zero-time phase. In the event that an overlap phase's green and yellow times are both zero, the clearance time is set to the minimum value of 1 second rather than the LOSTTIMES values.

>Operation Changes Made for Better Program Responses.

A number of operational changes in the program's execution have been made for better responses to certain situations.

-- The field separator between the INTERSECTION number and description is now always displayed except when the cursor is in the number field.
-- Extra SEQUENCE codes which SIGNAL85 may have placed in a data file are ignored if the file is being LOADed with the SHARE option. Only the first SEQUENCE code is accepted.
-- If no NODELIST exists, no EXPORT is attempted. This option can be used to establish the name of the export file for subsequent EXPORT * commands, particularly if they are in a REPEAT loop where each EXPORT is to be stacked one after the other.
-- The PLOT and TIMINGS commands no longer require that SATFLOWS have been entered in order to execute.
-- The ESCape key is checked more frequently during repeated error displays.
-- WIDTHS inputs are now maintained at the same accuracy as SIGNAL85 for better compatibility with that and other TEAPAC programs.
-- New error checks occur to make sure each non-zero WIDTH entry has VOLUME in it and that each non-zero VOLUME entry has a WIDTH.

>Minor Bugs Fixed.

A bug in the re-entry of a NODELIST longer than 12 intersections using the ASK command has been fixed, as has a line counting problem for certain cases displayed by the SUMMARISE command. Also a potential bug in terminating control files executed from the DOS command prompt has been repaired. Finally, PREPASSR now requires that all GREENTIMES be entered as values less than 1.00 (a decimal percentage) before any of them will be converted to seconds. The same is true of YELLOWTIMES. A bug has been located and fixed which caused difficulties when trying to enter PHASEMOVEMENTS in the Menu Mode when no PHASEMOVEMENTS had been previously defined.

>TEAPAC Interface V2 L2.0, V2 L2.1 and V2 L2.2 Installed.

The latest releases of the standard TEAPAC Interface, V2 L2.0 11NOV91, V2 L2.1 07JAN92, and V2 L2.2 01MAY92, have been installed in the PREPASSR program, these interfaces being a major update of the version previously used in PREPASSR. The following paragraphs summarise the improvements and changes implemented, as documented in the updated TEAPAC Tutorial/Reference Manual. Check this documentation for complete details of this new interface release.

V2 L2.2 01MAY92

Simplified LOAD and SAVE Commands Don't Require FILES Command.

The LOAD and SAVE commands can now be used without using the FILES command first to define the file to be used. If the FILES command is not used to define the file before the LOAD or SAVE commands are used, the user will now be prompted to enter the file name, if desired. If this is done, the LOAD or SAVE proceeds as normal, with the exception that the file named will not be retained in the FILES list and the LOAD will start at line 1 of the named file regardless of any line number given. The file name must be entered each time the file is accessed in this fashion. Entering the file name once on the FILES command eliminates this duplicate entry, and is recommended if a file will be accessed more than once in a given session.

New .CFG Files Designate Location of Data Files.

New .CFG files can now be used to designate the drive and path where data files are to be stored (among other things). If no drive or path is specified for a file, this location will be used for the data file. A specified drive or path will over-ride the .CFG file location. A TEAPAC.CFG file can be used for any and all TEAPAC programs, but it will be over-ridden by a program-specific .CFG file, if it exists. The definition of the contents of these .CFG files appear in Appendix G along with the discussion of the new TEAPAC Menu System which also uses the .CFG files (see next section).

Data files can now also be preceded by the ".\" notation to refer to the current logged subdirectory or by the "..\" notation to refer to the parent subdirectory of the current logged subdirectory. If no CFG files are located by the program, the default location for any file name entered will be the current logged sub-directory ".\", unless a drive or path is entered in front of the actual file name. If "~" is placed in front of the actual file name, the system PATH will be searched for the file. See the detailed discussion of program installation and CFG files in Appendix G for further information.

<Next Program> Option of STOP Command Implemented; also New SHELL Option.

The <Next Program> option of STOP has been implemented, allowing the definition of the next program to run when the current program is terminated. In order for this function to work, the current program must be initiated with the TEAPAC Menu System which is described in detail in Appendix G. This is an efficient way to go directly from one program to another. It allows the user to run the next program without returning to the operating system, and is also used by the automatic export features of some TEAPAC programs.

If SHELL is entered in the <Next Program> field, the running program will remain resident in memory and the user will be allowed to enter any single DOS command to be executed. When that DOS task is completed, DOS will return control to the original program. If more than one DOS command is needed, the DOS command for SHELL should be COMMAND. When done, the EXIT command will return control to the original program. This is the DOS SHELL function.

Improved Error Checking and Status Messages.

A number of minor improvements have been made in the arena of input error checking and processing following certain types of errors. Valid ranges of input have been established for certain commands like GOTO, HEADING, IODEVICES, LOAD, NEXTLINES, REPEAT, and SAVE, and no action is taken on these types of active commands if any type of input error is detected. Commands with no parameters (like SUMMARISE) are also verified to make sure no parameters were entered.

A new status message in the opening screen indicates that a DOS command line file entry is being loaded (rather than "press any key"). The error message displays have also been enhanced to indicate if a message is only a warning rather than an error.

New Meaning for Escape in Program Control Menu.

When the Program Control Menu is displayed, pressing the ESCape key now has the same meaning as pressing Q for Quit. That is, pressing ESCape now places the cursor on the Quit menu selection in preparation to terminate the program.

Command Buffer Size Increased to 10 Lines.

The number of manual mode commands which are remembered has been increased from five to ten. These commands can be retrieved by using the up- and down-arrows in the Manual Mode.

Minor Problems Resolved in Menu Displays.

A few minor bugs have been repaired which sometimes caused unpredictable results. For example, if an active command which was executed from a menu display happened to be displayed on the last possible display line of the menu, the next display of the same menu would have random garbage in it. This has been corrected. Also fixed is a rare problem where the last lines of certain long output reports would be distorted on the screen. A minor enhancement has also been made which eliminates unnecessary pauses in the screen displays when output is being directed to the printer or a file.

V2 L2.1 07JAN92

Opening Screen Displays TEAPAC Interface Version Being Used.

The opening screen of TEAPAC programs now display the version, level and date of the TEAPAC interface being used for easy reference. This will be most useful in the future when checking the interface version being used by TEAPAC programs installed on a given computer.

More Editing Keys Added.

Two new editing keys have been added for compatibility with some word processors and editors which are available. When editing a field in either the Menu or Manual Mode, the cursor can be advanced to the beginning of the next "word" of the field by as using Ctrl-Right-Arrow, as well as ^F. The cursor can be moved to the beginning of the previous "word" by using Ctrl-Left-Arrow, as well as ^A. These additions should be noted in Table G-2 of Appendix G in the TEAPAC Tutorial/Reference Manual

DOS Shell Option Added from Menu.

The DOS Shell option which has been available with the STOP command is now also available when using the Quit selection in the Program Control Menu. The user is now prompted with "Exit to DOS (No/Yes/Shell)?". If "S" is pressed, the user will be prompted for a DOS command which will be executed, then the TEAPAC program will resume operation where it left off with no loss of input data. As before, the DOS program to be run while using the Shell option must be small enough to fit in memory while the TEAPAC program is still in memory or a DOS error will occur. This is a useful option, for example, for executing a DIR command to determine the name of a file to use for a subsequent SAVE.

V2 L2.0 11NOV91

Clearer Messages/Response for File Open Errors.

Users have frequently been confused by the file-related error messages previously issued by TEAPAC programs. This has been particularly true when a named file did not exist, as well as when a file designated as a "new file" (by using the "/N" switch) already existed. The messages which are displayed under these two conditions have been clarified, as have the action responses which the user may take as a result of these conditions. When a named file does not exist, the user is given the opportunity to re-specify its name or to create a file with that name. When a "new file" already exists, the user is given the opportunity to use the existing file anyway, or to re-specify its name.

New LOAD Options Allow Multiple SHAREs and IGNORE Sections of Files.

The LOAD command has been enhanced in two ways, as described below. An additional parameter has been added which can be used when the SHARE option is used. This indicates how many sets of data should be LOADed during the SHARE operation. For example, if five sets of intersection data for SIGNAL85 are stored sequentially in a file by SIGNAL85, and are to be LOADed by PRETRANSYT, all five intersections can be LOADed with the SHARE option by using the "LOAD 1 1 SHARE 5" command.

A new option has been added to the LOAD command which allows sets of data to be skipped in a file. This is the IGNORE option. For example, if the same file as above is used by SIGNAL85, but only the fifth intersection is needed, the "LOAD 1 1 IGNORE 4" command can be used to skip over the first four intersections, then followed by "LOAD *" to LOAD the fifth. This option can be particularly useful when LOADing the lines which need to be skipped would over-write data already LOADed into the program. Since the IGNORE option does not process the skipped lines at all, the previous data will be retained. This option also assists in moving quickly through a file without the need to know the line numbers where desired section begin.

Improved Full-screen Editing Options.

A frustrating problem with earlier versions of TEAPAC programs was when data values were entered on an active command, then the cursor was inadvertently moved off the active command line, thereby losing the entered information. A check has now been added which prevents the user from moving off of an active command line after changes to it have been made. A message to this effect is now displayed, also offering the ESCape key as a way to abort the active command if the change was unintentional.

Another bothersome trait of the Menu Mode was that the last entry on a command line was not right-justified after it was entered, since the cursor moved to the next line before the justification occurred. This gave the inaccurate impression that the entry had not been completed properly. This condition has been corrected so that before the cursor leaves a line of a full-screen display the line is shown in its completed and formatted form. This is also true after the ESCape key and other abortive-type actions are taken.

Five new cursor editing keys have been added to the full-screen displays which allow improved text editing and cursor control. ^A will move the cursor forward to the start of the next "word" of the current field, ^F will move the cursor backward to the start of the previous "word" of the field, ^T will delete the current "word" of the field, and ^Y will delete the remainder of the field, starting at the current cursor position. These keys will operate in this fashion in any field of a full-screen display, but are particularly useful when editing the text of [TITLES] and INTERSECTION commands. The ^ENTER (or ^J) key may also be used to enter a field on a line of a full-screen display and immediately move the cursor to the first field of the next line. This is particularly useful when the last entry for a line is not in the last field of the line, avoiding the need for several cursor movements which would otherwise be necessary to move to the next input field.

A feature that has been in testing in some programs like SITE, PREPASSR and PRETRANSYT has now been formalized, allowing the clearer display of the field boundaries on active "selector" commands in the full-screen displays. This allows that when the selector field such as the INTERSECTION number is entered, the entire line is blanked so that the previous fields will not inadvertently be entered for the newly selected intersection, but when the cursor is move to the other fields, the field boundaries re-appear for more clear editing.

New CALCULATE Command and Use of User Variables.

A new command called CALCULATE has been added which allows the user to use the program either as a simple calculator, a complex expression evaluator, or even a programmable calculator. Arbitrarily complex arithmetic expressions using the +, -, * and / symbols can be entered and evaluated, using either numeric constants as operands or using previously CALCULATEd variables as operands. Multiple levels of parentheses ( ) can be used. The result is always displayed with four decimal accuracy, and the integer-rounded value can be optionally assigned as the value of any of the 26 user variables A thru Z by preceding the equation with the variable name and an = sign. These user variables can then be used in subsequent CALCULATions, or as numeric parameter values in any command of the program, as described below. The user variables are the same as those used by the REPEAT command, allowing REPEAT variables to be used in the CALCULATion, and vice versa. The CALCULATE command replaces the unused USERMODEL command.

User variables from either CALCULATE or REPEAT commands can now be used as parameter values for any numeric field of any command in the program. This means, for example, that the VOLUMES of TUTOR can be CALCULATEd to include the effects of several iterative growth factors, or that the <Cycle Length> used in a DESIGN can be CALCULATEd from the user variable of a REPEAT command. The value of any of the 26 user variables is entered as the parameter value simply by preceding the variable name with the = equal sign. As an example, if a REPEAT CYC 1 5 is used in a control file, giving the successive values of 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 to the "C" variable, an actual cycle length to be used can be calculated by the CALCULATE X=25*C command and followed by a DESIGN =X command, to analyze the impact of the five cycles 25, 50, 75, 100 and 125.

Improved Status Messages.

The Error Number which is listed in the program documentation in Appendix E and F is now displayed in the error box on the screen, making it easier to look up the error causes and possible responses in the manual. The "ERROR" display is also now blinking to draw more attention to it, particularly on monochrome displays. Other status flags such as the "ACTIVE", "WAIT", "cont..", and "more..", as well as a new "acknol" flag are also blinking for better visibility, and all such status flags are cleared from the display when they have been acknowledged. The SAVE message also includes the file number and the name of the file in which the data has been SAVEd.

Improved Manual Mode Operations.

The Manual Mode has been substantially enhanced by removing the archaic DOS editing functions and providing full-screen editing capabilities virtually identical to those used in the Menu Mode for full-screen editing of entries. Full-screen editing keys that relate to the multi-line and multi-screen displays are simply disabled. Another feature which has been added to the Manual Mode is a five-line memory of the last five non-blank Manual Mode commands which have been entered. For example, if a DESIGN 120 2 command is issued, but the results indicate that a VOLUME has not been entered correctly, a VOLUME command can be issued, then the previous DESIGN 120 2 entry can be recalled simply by pressing the up arrow twice. Manual commands which are entered or recalled from memory can now be easily edited with cursor keys before the ENTER key is pressed, using the Menu Mode editing keys (including the new keys described above). For example, the DESIGN 120 2 can be quickly changed to DESIGN 130 2 by recalling it and then editing it before ENTER is pressed. The Manual Mode editing line now also displays the status of the INSert mode next to the display of the PRINTR status.

The F4 key can now be used not only to go to the Menu Mode from the Manual Mode, but also to go to the Manual Mode from any display in the Menu Mode. If a field entry has been changed immediately prior to pressing the F4 key, this is equivalent to first pressing the END key before the F4 key. In other words, any full-screen display entry is made before the Manual Mode is entered. Also, when going to the Manual Mode in any fashion, a message is displayed indicating how to return to the Menu Mode, in case the Manual Mode was inadvertently selected.

New Options for Header Information.

A number of improvements to the information which is displayed in the screen header block have been made for clearer understanding and representation of the program's status. First, the PRINTR flag is not displayed in the header block if the display is a result of an action in the Manual Mode (except if the ASK command was used), so that upon return to the Manual Mode at the end of the action the header block does not display an inaccurate status of the printer. The header block also displays the current status of the INSert mode.

The page number of the IODEVICES command will not be incremented if the output display is to the screen so that only subsequent printed pages will be incremented. This allows on-screen interactive analysis to take place between printed pages without the need to reset the page number each time. Another new option for the page number is that if the page number is set to a -1 value on the IODEVICES command, the screen header and the title header on printed output will not display the current date and time.

In a related matter, the [TITLES] commands can now enclose the desired titles in 'single quotes' or "double quotes", thereby providing a means to get leading blank characters in the titles. This also provides a way to remove a title line by entering a ' ' or simply a ' entry for any of the PROJECT, DESCRIPTION or NOTE commands.

A new option for HEADING, an entry of a zero value, has been added which duplicates the F6 printer eject function. The significance here is that F6 cannot be included in a control file, while HEADING 0 can. Furthermore, HEADING 0 will reset the output line count on the printer. This allows the IODEVICES command to be used within a control file to turn the printer on and off, as long as HEADING 0 is used each time it is turned back on to eject the printed page and reset the output line counter.

Commands Included in Menus Adjusted.

The SUMMARISE command has been added to the [APPLICATION] menu selection so that the Summary of Parameter Values report can be produced from the same menu selection as other application-specific commands. An entry selection to set the [TITLES] commands has also been added to the Special Menu so that the report headings can be set in the Special Menu without the need to return to the Program Control Menu.

Improved Demo Support.

The demonstration period has been increased to 60 minutes for demonstration copies of TEAPAC programs, and a new Student Demonstration version with a demonstration period of 240 minutes has been established. Special arrangements with Strong Concepts must be made for such a Student Demonstration version.

Minor Annoying Bugs Fixed.

An apparent intermittent problem when LOADing control files directly from the DOS command line has been corrected. Support for screens which are longer than the normal 25 lines has been improved. A problem which evolves when the ESCape key is pressed to terminate the display of error messages has been corrected.

:PREPASSR V1 L1.3 05MAR91

>Improved Phase SEQUENCE Coding for PASSER Input.

The decoding of the TEAPAC phase sequence codes and re-coding for the inputs required by PASSER has been substantially improved so that the phasing used in PASSER is more representative of the TEAPAC phasing which is expected. This is primarily in cases where one left turn is unprotected, leaving the opposite left turn as an independent lead phase, such as SEQUENCE code types 2 and 3. A similar improvement has been made for split phasing types 7 and 8, as well as for single phase control (Type 1). Finally, if single phase control is used for a leg of an intersection without an opposing approach (as in a typical diamond interchange signal), improved phase sequence coding for PASSER has been implemented.

>Lost Time Added into Minimums Required for PASSER Input.

Since PASSER does not consider the actual clearance intervals for each phase of each signal, the minimum time coded into PASSER input must represent the minimum phase time, including clearance. In TEAPAC programs, the MINIMUM value represents a minimum greentime, separate from whatever clearance interval is needed and/or used. As such, for consistency with other TEAPAC program inputs, especially if the PREPASSR inputs are being shared with other TEAPAC programs like SIGNAL85 and PRETRANSYT, the minimums now coded for PASSER include the entered MINIMUMS (for green intervals) plus the designated system lost time, as input on the LOSTTIMES command. That is, the minimums used for PASSER are the sum of PREPASSR's input MINIMUMS, the Beginning Lag LOSTTIME, and the Ending Lag LOSTTIME. If this standard TEAPAC convention has not been followed in previous data which has been SAVEd to disk, the same effect should be created by modifying the LOSTTIMEs in the file to 0 and 0, or preferably by subtracting the actual LOSTTIMES from the input MINIMUMS.

>Improved Delineation of Fields for Active INTERSECTION Command.

The fields of the active INTERSECTION command are now more clearly delineated for entry of the description along with the actual intersection node number. When the cursor is in the node number field, the delineation still disappears so that any entry will erase the entire command line, but pressing ENTER will now move more clearly to the description field so that it can be entered, if desired. (The erasure of the entire command line still exists so that the previous description does not inadvertently get assigned to a new node number, especially if the INTERSECTION command is only being used to select another "current" intersection after all descriptions have been previously entered.)

>Advisory Usage Notes - OFFSETS and OPTIMIZE.

If OFFSETS for existing or optimized conditions are to be entered into the PREPASSR data base, and subsequently used for a simulation-only run of PASSER, the OFFSETS must be entered for the phase which is represented in the PHASER.DAT file of PASSER. This is usually, but not limited to, the beginning of the "main street green" phase.

In the documentation, the discussion for OPTIMIZE is not exactly correct. The option other than NONE (simulation) should be SPLITS+OFFSETS, not OFFSETS, since at this point PASSER's optimization cannot be easily controlled to optimize offsets-only, except if the MINIMUMS are entered so as to fully constrain the splits. This will be an option in a future version of PREPASSR. As before, use of either the OFFSETS or LIST options of OPTIMIZE will still create the same optimization results with PASSER as the SPLITS+OFFSETS (for now).

:PREPASSR V1 L1.2 31DEC90

>Changes Improve Ability to Share SIGNAL85 Data Files.

Two difficulties have been corrected which allow improved sharing of SIGNAL85 data files.

When the SHARE option of the LOAD command is used, PHASEMOVEMENTS commands which are SAVEd in a SIGNAL85 data file are ignored unless the SEQUENCE code for that intersection has been entered as -1 through -5. No error message is issued in this case, as was previously the case.

Also, to account for the fact that the OUTPUT command in PREPASSR differs from that in SIGNAL85, input from the SAVEd OUTPUT command in a SIGNAL85 data file is ignored without an error message when that data file is LOADed with the SHARE option. The current values of PREPASSR's OUTPUT command remain unchanged in this situation.

:PREPASSR V1 L1.1 21OCT90

>New PASSER Options Enabled Through PREPASSR.

Several system control parameters in a PASSER run can now be controlled by inputs to the PREPASSR program. The OPTIMIZE command can be used to signal whether a simulation-only is desired by PASSER by using the NONE entry (no optimization), and normal optimization by PASSER can be requested with the OFFSETS keyword. The other possible inputs for OPTIMIZE which are used by PRETRANSYT are ignored by PREPASSR.

The SIMULATION command contains a parameter which describes the number of minutes to be analyzed by PASSER. Its default value is 60 minutes and can be set as low as 15 minutes for a peak analysis. The other possible inputs for SIMULATION which are used by PRETRANSYT are ignored by PREPASSR. The display of these other inputs have been removed from the SUMMARISE report.

The LOSTTIMES command can now be used to define how much lost time exists at the start and end of each phase. These two numbers are added together for PASSER to represent the total lost time for each phase. The defaults of 4 seconds at the start and 0 seconds at the end of each phase add up to the normal default in PASSER of 4 seconds per phase.

>Export to PASSER Can Now Be Stacked in Single PASSER Input File.

The output of the EXPORT command can now be stacked behind a previous EXPORT to the same file used by the previous EXPORT so that multiple runs of PASSER can be made from a single input data file. This function is performed by using the default "*" value for the <PASSER File Name> input on the EXPORT command after having previously used a specified file name for an EXPORT.

>New and Improved Menu/Group Name Definitions.

Two new menu/group names have been created for ease of use of the Special Inputs and Procedures menu. The [EXPORT] menu/group includes all of the commands which are commonly used to define the type of EXPORT to be performed, and the [IMPORT] menu/group includes the command information commonly used to import the results of a PASSER run back into PREPASSR.

Some additional clean-up of other group name definitions has been done as well. Most notably, the MINIMUMS command has been added to the [PARAMETERS] group so that its values are SAVEd by default with all the other [PARAMETERS] commands. Some missing commands have been added to the [ALL] group and it has been re-alphabetized for ease of use.

In conjunction with the above changes, the PHASEMOVS command has been expanded to PHASEMOVEMENTS for compatibility with SIGNAL85, the default SEQUENCE is 11 (not 0), and the extra copies of [SYSTEM] commands which were SAVEd with each intersection's data have been eliminated from the default SAVE list.

>Improved Error Detection and Messages.

A new error condition has been created, checking to make sure non-zero SATURATIONFLOWS have been entered for every non-zero approach WIDTH. Also, the error displayed when a zero-length GREENTIME is used has been improved to indicate which INTERSECTION has the zero GREENTIME.

>Special Phasing Case Handled Better.

If PHASEMOVEMENTS is used to define a special phasing, the determination of when the left turns are always opposed (permitted) also checks to make sure the opposing volume and the left turn volume are non-zero before designating the movement as opposed.

:PREPASSR V1 L1.0 21JUL90

>Original Release of PREPASSR.

This is the original release of PREPASSR, a TEAPAC program designed to construct PASSER2-87 data files using the normal TEAPAC commands, data files and user interface. The program is patterned directly from the PRETRANSYT program (V2 L2.0), and will thus read both PRETRANSYT and SIGNAL85 data files directly.

With regard to the NODELIST command, the menu system can only be used for the 12-node version of PREPASSR to enter the entire NODELIST. In the 100-node version, as many nodes as will fit on the full-screen display can be entered (usually around 20 intersections), but future editing will only display the first 12. If more intersections are needed than this will allow, they must be entered in the Manual Mode using ampersands (&) to continue the long command lines to the subsequent entry line. The ASK NODELIST command should not be used when more than 12 intersections have already been entered on the NODELIST command.

this page last updated September 07, 2008